An Original Vampire's Guide to the Universe (2nd in Universal Vampire)
by NicholasFlamelFan
Summary: The Doctor has changed. Not only that but things have become much more difficult. Or rather... they will become difficult for Tyra. A lot of things have changed in her life and even more are going to change. Will her siblings accept the fact or what will happen once they see her again?
1. Born Again

**Faceclaim: Barbara Palvin**

The newly regenerated Doctor started dashing around the console, flicking switches left and right "6 PM… Tuesday…" Tyra shook her head at him when he grinned at her "October 5006… On the way to Barcelona." He straightened up, facing both girls "Now then… How do I look?" Tyra was about to open her mouth when he slapped a hand over it "No, no, no, no no no no no no. No. Don't tell me."

"Then don't ask," Tyra grumbled, shoving his hand away. So this was the Doctor that her brother had described. He did look as good as she had imagined. A far stretch from the former Doctor. Prettier, she guessed.

The Doctor huffed at her before starting to pat his new body down "Let's see… Two legs, two arms, two hands…" He laughed before a frown appeared on his face as he twisted one of his wrists around "Slight weakness in the dorsal tubercle…" A second later, the Doctor moved on, his hand flying to his hair "HAIR… I'm not bald. Oh, oh. Big hair."

"Very big hair," Tyra snorted, glancing at Rose out of the corner of her eye. She was staring at the Doctor with wide eyes and growing anger. Tyra grimaced. This wasn't going to end well. Especially since Rose had been more or less angry since she found out about Tyra being a vampire.

"Sideburns," the Doctor cheered, fingers trailing down the sides of his head "I've got sideburns… Or really bad skin."

Tyra sighed when he tilted his head at her "Why not look into a mirror? Would make things so much easier." He continued to look at her until she continued "It's sideburns." This Doctor really seemed to be the complete opposite of the former Doctor. Actually, he was more like one of those pretty boys that Rose liked to drag along. And he was quite a bit younger looking than his previous regeneration. He was still taller than Tyra, though… Which was annoyingly unfair but she doubted he would ever get close to her height, no matter how often he regenerated.

The Doctor continued inspecting himself "Little bit thinner," he remarked, slapping his stomach "That's weird. Give me time, I'll get used to it." He froze, shifting his shoulder "I… have got… a mole," he breathed, sounding as though he just cured cancer "I can feel it."

"Rose?" Tyra spoke up when her breathing turned harsher. She looked scared of the new Doctor and more than ready to attack.

The Doctor hadn't noticed, still rambling about his new mole. At least, he was still as oblivious as the last one. Tyra shook her head, turning her attention to him while keeping Rose in her sight "Between my shoulder blades. There's a mole. That's alright. Love the mole." He turned to Rose "Go on then, tell me. What do you think?"

"Who are you?" Rose asked him, frozen to her place by one of the corals.

The Doctor frowned, confused as to why she didn't recognize him "I'm the Doctor." He glanced at Tyra who mouthed 'regeneration' at him. Realisation dawned on him. While he had talked to Tyra about his past and what Time Lords could do, Rose had no idea. He never once mentioned it to her in a way she would understand.

"No… Where is he?" Rose shook her head "Where's the Doctor? What have you done to him?"

The Doctor blinked "You saw me. I – I changed." He jerked his thumb over his shoulder "Right in front of you. Tyra believes me, don't you, Ty?"

"It's him, Rose. He really did change," she told Rose quietly.

"How would you know?" Rose snapped, glaring at Tyra. She couldn't believe that Tyra lied to her. How could she not tell her that she was a vampire? A blood-sucking monster? "I saw him sort of explode and then you replaced him, like a… teleport or transmat or a body swap or something." The Doctor could only gape at Rose silently, at a loss for words. Rose took several steps towards him. As soon as she was within arm's reach, she shoved him back "You're not fooling me. I've seen all sorts of things. Nanogenes… Gelth… Slitheen…" The Doctor raised his eyebrow, unsure of where Rose was going with this "Oh, my God, are you a Slitheen?"

"I'm not a Slitheen," the Doctor gave back calmly.

Rose's voice rose to a shout "Send him back. I'm warning you… Send the Doctor back right now."

When she made to move forward to shove the Doctor again, Tyra stopped her with a hand on her shoulder "Rose. The Doctor is the only one who can pilot the Tardis, right? If you don't believe it's him then let him show you. How about that?" She glanced over her shoulder at the Time Lord "Or you tell her something… Like… Erm – I don't know. How did you two meet?"

"Yes," the Doctor nodded excitedly "That's it. Very first word I ever said to you. Trapped in that cellar. Surrounded by shop window dummies… oh…" He looked away for a moment, reminiscing "Such a long time ago. I took your hand… I said one word. Just one word. I said run." Then he looked at Tyra "And you just randomly butted in and never left. And then we ran."

"Story of my life," Tyra grumbled.

The Doctor smirked at her for a moment before turning back to Rose who had tears in her eyes by now "Doctor?" she whispered.

"Hello," he grinned. Rose sighed exasperatedly and stumbled backwards, coming to rest against one of the beams behind her. The Doctor took off around the other side of the console "And we never stopped, did we? All across the universe. Running, running, running…" He flicked a few switches on the console "One time we had to hop. Do you remember? Hopping for our lives." the Doctor started hopping up and down energetically "Yeah? All that hopping? Remember hopping for your lives? Hop? With the…" he trailed off, catching Rose's lack of reaction to his word vomit "No?"

Rose swallowed heavily "Can you change back?"

"Do you want me to?" the Doctor questioned quietly.

"Yeah," Rose nodded.

The Doctor bit his lip, looking close to tears "Oh."

Tyra put her hand on his arm, nudging him with her shoulder "I don't. I'm sure that I would even enjoy travelling with you if you were still wearing a stick of celery." At those words, she sent him a wink, causing a beaming grin to appear on his face.

It fell quickly though as he turned to Rose again "Do you want to leave?"

"Do you want me to leave?" Rose questioned in shock.

The Doctor shook his head "No. But… your choice… if you want to go home." When Rose didn't reply, he nodded sadly "Cancel Barcelona. Change to… London… the Powell Estate – ah – let's say the 24th of December. Consider it a Christmas present." Rose slowly edged towards the console, staying as far away from both Tyra and the new Doctor as possible "There," he stepped back, his arms tucked under his armpits defensively. The Tardis shuddered.

"I'm going home?"

"Up to you," the Doctor shrugged "Back to your mum. It's all waiting. Fish and chips, sausages and mash, beans of toast… No, Christmas. Turkey!" He paused and grimaced "Although having met your mother… nut loaf would be more appropriate." Rose looked down quickly, trying to hide a smile "Was that a smile?"

"No," Rose scowled, trying to drop the grin that was forming on her lips again.

"That was a smile," the Doctor pointed out knowingly.

Rose shook her head "No, it wasn't."

"Oh, come on," the Doctor rolled his eyes, not understanding why she was having as many problems with this as she did. Sure, it was weird but Rose had seen her fair share of other weird things over the last year "All I did was change, I didn't…" Suddenly, he started gagging, bending over the console.

The Tardis shuddered more violently as Tyra carefully made her way over to the doubled-over Doctor "Are you alright?"

"What?" Rose blinked.

"I said I didn't…" The same thing happened again, more violently. The Doctor continued retching, stumbling into Tyra's arms "Uh oh."

Rose edged around the console again "Er… Are you alright?" A piece of time vortex escaped the Doctor's mouth, causing Rose to jump back "What's that?"

"Oh… The changed is going a bit wrong and all," he choked out, almost falling down when he turned.

"Doctor," Tyra murmured into his ear, trying to get him to focus on her for a moment "Could you try and land the Tardis before anything else happens? I think that would be the smartest thing to do now."

The Doctor looked at the console, a lever catching his eye as he surged forward "I haven't used this one in years." He pulled it, causing them to nearly fall from the violent jerk the Tardis gave.

"What are you doing?" Rose demanded, clinging to the console.

"Putting on a bit of speed," the Doctor laughed crazily "That's it." He started turning more knobs while Tyra and Rose were holding onto the console for dear life. Tyra was still a bit weakened from dying earlier and felt like she could do with one of those nifty blood bags in her room now. Too bad that the Doctor needed her at the moment. There was no way she was going to leave him while he was in this condition with Rose acting the way she was "My beautiful ship. Come on, faster. That's a girl. Faster. Wanna break the time limit?"

"Stop it," Rose demanded angrily, glaring at the man who was calling himself the Doctor. He was so different… It couldn't be true, could it?

The Doctor rolled his eyes "Ah, don't be so dull… Let's have a bit of fun. Let's rip through the vortex."

"Is that really your plan of action?" Tyra frowned worriedly "It seems a bit… What's the word?"

His voice calmed for a moment "The regeneration is going wrong. I can't stop myself…" he grimaced in pain "Ah, my head." The Doctor sprung up again, voice going back to the previous crazed tone "Faster. Let's open those engines."

A bell rang and Rose shivered in uneasiness "What's that?"

"We're going to crash land," the Doctor proclaimed in delight.

"And that's a good thing?" Tyra breathed out, stumbling into the railing when she lost her grip "You know that it won't help anyone if you were to kill us all?"

The Doctor laughed "Too late. Out of control." He ran past Tyra, giggling and hopping around like a little kid "Oh, I love it. Hot dawg."

"You're gonna kill us," Rose breathed.

"Hold on tight. Here we go," the Doctor grinned madly "Christmas Eve…"


	2. Christmas Invasion

Tyra was thrown off her feet when the Tardis started bouncing off several buildings before coming to a halt with one last jerk.

The Doctor was up immediately and out of the door before the other two could even get up "Here we are then, London," the Doctor exclaimed, grinning at Jackie and Mickey who were staring at him with huge eyes "Earth. The Solar System." Tyra stepped over Rose who was still lying on the floor, looking a little dazed. She leaned against the doorway to see the Doctor with his arms around Mickey and Jackie "We did it. Jackie. Mickey. Blimey. No, no, no, no, hold on. Wait there. I've got something to say. There was something I had to tell you, something important. What was it? No, hold on," he hissed the last part when Mickey was about to open his mouth "Shush, shush, shush. Oh, I know. Merry Christmas." He collapsed forward with Tyra barely managing to catch him before his head hit the ground.

"What happened?" Rose breathed with wide eyes, looking down at the Doctor on Tyra's lap "Is he alright?"

Mickey shrugged helplessly "I don't know. He just keeled over."

"Who is he?" Jackie demanded "Where's the Doctor?"

"He just fainted," Tyra pointed out with a small grin "And that is the Doctor, Jackie."

"What do you mean, that's the Doctor?" Jackie frowned "Doctor who?"

Tyra looked up at Mickey "Could you hold him up for a moment? I can carry him but I need to get up first."

Jackie tilted her head "You? Maybe Mickey should carry him."

"I'm stronger than I look," Tyra assured her, bending down to pick the Doctor up. He wasn't as heavy as she thought he would be. The only thing that made carrying him a little awkward was the Doctor's height. This regeneration was almost as tall as the last one which meant that he still towered over her.

When they got to the Tyler's flat, Jackie waved Tyra to a bedroom and told her to put the Doctor down on the bed while she went to go and look for something "Here." Jackie shoved the clothes at Mickey and ushered Rose and Tyra out of the room.

A few minutes later, Tyra was pacing the living room, while Rose had stretched out on the couch. The vampire inside of Tyra was agitated at the Doctor's state and she needed to feed soon.

"Sorry," Jackie spoke up, stopping the girl in her tracks "I – It was Tyra, right?"

"Yes."

"Would you like a cup of tea?" Jackie offered.

Rose stood up, placing herself in between her mother and the… thing "Mum. Stay away from her."

Tyra held up her hands in annoyance and ignored Rose's glare, while Jackie raised her eyebrows in surprise "Rose?"

"She's a monster, mum," Rose snapped "A vampire."

"What are you talking about?" Jackie exclaimed "Vampires aren't real."

Rose scoffed and stormed into the kitchen before coming back out with a knife clutched in her hand. Jackie let out a startled gasp as Rose raised the knife to her arm, slashing at the skin lightly. Enough to bleed but not enough to hurt for too long.

Within a second, Tyra was across the room, holding Rose against the wall. Her face had changed – more from anger than actual hunger "You can be fucking glad that I can control myself. Any other vampire and you would most likely be dead. You, your mother and Mickey," she hissed dangerously "Think before you pull shit like that the next time." Tyra stepped back and whirled around, storming past a pale and shaking Jackie and a shocked Mickey. As soon as she was outside, she sighed "Oh, who am I kidding. Rose isn't going to let this go… Aliens are fine but apparently vampires are an abomination. Typical."

"Are you alright, Ty?" Mickey spoke up as soon as the door closed behind him.

Tyra turned to face him and sent him a fake smile "Sure. Why wouldn't I be?"

"I heard what Rose said," he murmured, leaning against the railing next to the girl "So you really are a vampire, aren't you?"

Tyra looked over at him, raising an eyebrow "Are you going to call me a monster too? Tell me how dangerous I am?"

"Rose was out of line," Mickey pointed out "She has known you for a while but that doesn't give her the right to talk to – or about you – like that."

"She's right, though. I mean, I did kill so many people that I lost count." Tyra leaned back, not even hiding her dismissive tone of voice. She looked down at the Tardis before shaking her head "Do you think the Doctor is going to be alright?"

Mickey shrugged "Sure he will be. He is the Doctor after all. No matter how much of an ass he can be." He studied Tyra from the side, noting the circles under her eyes along with the pallor of her skin. He had done his research "Tyra? When did you last…?"

Tyra raised an eyebrow "What?"

He hesitated, trying to find a way to word it "Is it feed? Sucking blood? What do you call it?"

"It's feed. Why?" she asked, a small, joking smile on her face "You offering?"

"Do you need me to?" he questioned, looking a mixture between nervous and excited. He might have only found out about the whole vampire thing a few minutes ago but he was Tyra's friend. Sure, he didn't know her as well as he maybe wanted to but that didn't mean that he thought she was a monster or anything just because he found out about her vampirism.

Tyra blinked, not having expected that. She didn't have many willing donors that weren't vampires themselves. Most Humans tend to frown upon biting – even during sex "Are you joking?"

Mickey shook his head "No. I'm worried about you. You look like you didn't sleep for – way too long, so if you need to drink some blood, just say the word. I trust you not to drain me."

"I – Thank you," she whispered "But not out here. We said too much already."

He wrapped his arm around Tyra's shoulders, practically dragging her back into the flat and to the room the Doctor was in "Does it hurt?" Mickey asked curiously.

Tyra grinned, showing all her teeth "I can make you feel whatever I want you to feel. I can make it hurt, I can make you feel pleasure or I can make you feel nothing at all. It all depends on the person."

"Pleasure?" Mickey blinked, tilting his head to the side "Have you ever…?"

"Yes," she told him bluntly "There was a time I used to… feed and fuck." He opened and closed his mouth a few times but Tyra shook her head "That's what the majority of vampires have taken to calling it. I haven't for a while though. It wasn't worth it anymore because it felt… wrong."

"Does it feel any different?" Mickey inquired, leaning forward with wide, curious eyes.

Tyra blushed a little "As far as I know it feels quite pleasant but I have never really felt the need to ask before. Most times I just made them forget it even happened, so… Yeah. I don't really know."

"So," Mickey spoke up after they had stared at each other awkwardly for a few moments "How do you want to do this?"

Tyra bit her lip "Your wrist would be the best choice. But Mickey, are you really sure? I can wait or go to the Tardis to grab a blood bag."

"Ty, you need it, right?" She nodded at his question and he thrust his wrist at her "Then go ahead. Just don't drain me," he joked with a wink.

Tyra let out a snort and carefully grabbed the offered wrist. One last long look at the boy's trusting expression and she bit down, making sure to do so as gently as possible. As the blood started flowing into her mouth, she felt the veins under her eyes get more pronounced. A scream from the door made her pull back quickly.

Rose was standing in the doorway, her face burning with anger "What are you playing at?" she shouted, storming over to Tyra and Mickey. Without a second of hesitation, she raised her hand, slapping Tyra in the face.

Tyra barely blinked at her and was about to do something not so nice when Mickey shot up "Are you for real, Rose? I told Tyra to drink from me since she wasn't feeling well."

"You allowed that monster to bite you?" Rose gaped at her ex-boyfriend "She could have killed you."

"I trust Tyra," Mickey argued, putting an arm on her arm in support "You have no right to kick up a fuss, Rose."

She inhaled sharply "You're my friend, Mickey. Please, she's dangerous."

"She is standing right here," Tyra snapped, shaking off Mickey's hand "And I was trying to be nice. I really was. I don't care what you think of me, Rose. I really, really don't give a crap." Within the blink of an eye, she was in front of Rose, staring into her eyes "You will not hit me again. Never. Do you understand?"

Rose nodded numbly "I understand."

"Great," Tyra clapped and walked over to sit on the bed next to the Doctor.

Mickey gaped at her with wide eyes "That is so awesome. How did you do that?"

"I'm going to tell the Doctor," Rose threatened after she snapped out of her daze.

Tyra rolled her eyes, running her hand through the Doctor's crazy hair. It was all over the place but that just made it look all the better "Go ahead. I only defended myself and if he forgave me so far, don't you think he would for this?"

"Here we go," Jackie announced, ignoring the tension in the room "Tina the cleaner's got this lodger, a medical student and she was fast asleep, so I just took it." She handed it to Rose, staying away from the bed since Tyra was still perched there "Though I still say we should take him to the hospital."

"We can't," Rose shook her head.

Mickey poked Tyra's shoulder and gestured to the door. She nodded and with one last look at the unconscious Doctor, she followed him out "I'm sorry about Rose," Mickey told her quietly.

Tyra shrugged "It's not your fault. Although she can be really happy that the Doctor would hate me if I did anything worse to her. Travelling with him is one of the best things that happened to me…"

"Still," Mickey argued "She was wrong to hit you."

"And I made sure she wouldn't do so again," Tyra countered "I'm serious, Mickey. Don't beat yourself up." They quieted down when the other two women walked past them into the kitchen.

From her place at the opposite wall, Tyra could hear Jackie's voice rise in disbelief "How can you go changing his face? Is that a different face or is he a different person?"

"How should I know?" Rose snapped "Sorry… The thing is I thought I knew him, Mum. I thought me and him were… And then he goes and does this. I keep forgetting he's not human."

"You could just ask if I know anything," Tyra spoke up, making sure the two in the kitchen would hear her "Because – as a matter of fact – I do."

Rose narrowed her eyes "How could you know anything about this?"

"Because he told me," Tyra pointed out "Why do you think?"

"As if he would tell you anything," the other girl scoffed "I bet he doesn't even know what you are."

Tyra snorted "Really? You really want to get into this again? I get that you're shocked, I really do but you really should get over it. Yes, I died in front of you. Yes, I woke up again. Yes, the Doctor changed but he's still the same man we have known for the last year."

Rose was about to answer when her attention turned to the television behind Tyra "Is that Harriet Jones?" she asked, walking out of the kitchen "Why is she on the telly?"

"She's Prime Minister now," Jackie pointed out "I'm eighteen quid a week better off. They're calling it Britain's Golden Age. I keep on saying my Rose has met her."

Rose shook her head with a small, fond grin "Did more than that. Stopped World War Three with her. Harriet Jones."

"_Prime Minister, what about those calling the Guinevere One Space Probe a waste of money?_" one of the reporters questioned on TV.

Harriet leaned forward a bit "_Now, that's where you're wrong. I completely disagree if you don't mind. The Guinevere One Space Probe represents this country's limitless ambition. British workmanship sailing up there among the stars."_

"_This is the spirit of Christmas,_" another man – one who was responsible for the program – Llewellyn called out "_Birth and rejoicing and the dawn of a new age and that is what we're achieving fifteen million miles away. Our very own miracle._"

The narrator came back onto the screen and finished the report "_The unmanned probe Guinevere One is about to make its final descent. Photographs of the Martian landscape should be received by midnight tonight._"

* * *

Tyra sank down on the sofa almost as soon as Mickey and Rose had left to go to the Christmas market nearby, burying her face in her hands. She had no idea what to do or how to make the Doctor better and it was eating at her.

"Are you alright?" Jackie questioned hesitatingly, keeping her distance.

Tyra glanced up and sighed "You know that I'm not going to hurt you, right? Rose never let me explain and honestly, I'm not sure she would listen anyway."

Jackie tilted her head "Yes, my Rose can be a bit stubborn."

"You're telling me," Tyra sighed "But that would imply that I'm any better. I'm not."

"I… When we first met," Jackie started, shuffling forward to perch on the edge of the couch Tyra was sitting on "You said you were eighteen but you seem to have been alone for longer than that. Doesn't your family care?"

Tyra shrugged "My family is complicated. I'm not on speaking terms with any of my siblings and my parents are gone."

"You have siblings?" Jackie asked curiously "I wish Rose could have had siblings…"

"It's not all that's made out to be," Tyra murmured "I have five siblings and I'm the youngest. Trust me, they're a pain."

Jackie's eyes widened "That's a lot of siblings." She looked at Tyra with narrowed eyes "How old are you really? Because I don't buy that you're eighteen. You look old enough to be on your own but something tells me that you're just a child."

Tyra let out a bitter laugh "I haven't been a child in a thousand years." She got up from the couch "I'm going to check up on the Doctor." She stalked out of the room and went to curl up on the bed next to the Doctor, listening to his dual heartbeat that was filling the silence of the room.

* * *

"Get off the phone," Rose snapped, bursting through the door to the flat. Tyra shot up from the bed, rubbing at her eyes tiredly.

"It's only Bev," Jackie told her daughter in confusion "She says hello."

Tyra leaned against the doorway, watching as Rose snatched the phone away from her mother "Bev? Yeah. Look, it'll have to wait." She hung up the phone and threw it to the side "Right, it's not safe. We've got to get out. Where can we go?"

Mickey snapped his fingers "My mate Stan. He'll put us up."

"That's only two streets away," Rose shook her head "What about Mo? Where's she living now?"

Jackie blinked, looking as confused as Tyra was feeling "I don't know. Peak District."

"Well, we'll go to cousin Mo's then," Rose decided, pulling at her mother's hand.

"No, it's Christmas Eve," Jackie exclaimed "We're not going anywhere. What are you babbling about?"

Tyra tilted her head "Something happened while you were out, didn't it?"

Rose was about to snap at her when she froze at the sight of the giant tree that had appeared while they were gone "Mum… Where did you get that tree? That's a new tree… Where did you get it?"

"I thought it was you," Jackie defended herself.

"How can it be me?" Rose gestured, staring at the tree in trepidation.

Jackie swallowed in fear and looked at the tree like the others were doing "Then who was it?"

Suddenly, the tree lit up by itself and started playing Jingle Bells "Oh, you're kidding me," Rose breathed.

"Get out! Go, go. Get out," Mickey hurried, shoving the three women in the direction of the front door when sections of the tree started to rotate in different directions. It started to move towards them, copping through furniture like it was nothing. Mickey picked up a chair, trying to fend it off.

"We've got to save the Doctor," Rose shouted over the obnoxiously loud noise of the music, pulling fruitlessly at the man's arm.

Jackie was standing in the doorway, looking over her shoulder nervously "What are you doing?"

"We can't just leave him," Rose exclaimed.

"Mickey," Tyra called when the tree had almost finished shredding the chair "Leave it. Come on." She pulled him away and shoved him into the bedroom where Rose was huddled close to the still unconscious Doctor. Tyra grabbed Jackie's wrist and pushed her over to Mickey when she heard the Christmas tree coming closer fast. She hesitated a moment too long, causing the tree to catch her in the side with one of its branches at the same time as Mickey steadied Jackie before she fell. The sheer force of it sent her flying across the room and into the wall by the Doctor's side. She landed with a pained gasp as she felt her arms snap.

"Tyra," Mickey cried out, hurrying to her side "Are you alright? Can you move?"

She gasped again, her broken arm going to her side with a grimace "I – Ouch."

The Doctor sat up with his sonic in his hand, aiming at the deathly Christmas tree. With one single flick of the switch, the killer tree exploded into tiny little pieces of confetti, leaving only the hole where it crashed through moments ago "Remote control," he mumbled "But who's controlling it?" He jumped out of bed, ignoring all of the shocked looks he was getting and reached down to pull Tyra to her feet "You okay?"

"Nothing I haven't dealt with before," she shrugged, feeling her arm mending itself "Are you?"

"Never better," he grinned manically. His grin was different from before and yet still so him. He grabbed a dressing gown that was thrown over the back of a chair and shrugged it on. His hand grasped Tyra's, leading her outside. Down on the street, three Santas were staring up at them, one holding a radio controller.

Mickey pointed "That's them," he exclaimed "What are they?"

"Shush," Rose hushed, watching as the Doctor aimed his screwdriver at them. The Santas backed away, beaming into the sky.

"They've just gone," Mickey blinked in confusion "What kind of rubbish were they? I mean, no offence but they're not much cop if a sonic screwdriver's going to scare them off."

The Doctor ignored Mickey, still staring at the spot the Santas had been standing in before "Pilot fish."

"What?"

"They're just pilot fish," the Doctor repeated, falling back into a wall in pain.

Rose latched onto his arm worriedly "What's wrong?"

"I woke up too soon," he groaned, his face scrunched up in pain "I'm still regenerating. I'm bursting with energy." The Doctor exhaled some kind of golden energy "You see? The pilot fish could smell it a million miles away. So they eliminate the defence, that's you lot, and they carry me off. They could run their batteries on me for a couple of… Ow."

Jackie helped Rose with steadying the man while Mickey stepped closer to Tyra, poking her side "Ow," she yelped, scooting away from Mickey with a small glare "What the hell, Mickey?"

"Sorry," he grinned sheepishly "Just wanted to see whether it was still bleeding or not."

Tyra rolled her eyes with a huff and lifted her shirt a little to show him the healed cut "It's fine. See? And my arm is fine as well."

"Your arm?"

"It was broken," Tyra explained with a small shrugged, not making a big deal out of it.

Their conversation was cut short when Jackie went on a bit of a medical rant at the Doctor "What do you need? Say it. Tell me, tell me, tell me. Painkillers?" The Doctor continued to open and close his mouth to say something in between her rant but was always cut off by Jackie "Do you need aspirin? Codeine? Paracetamol? Oh, I don't know, Pepto-Bismol? Liquid Paraffin. Vitamin C? Vitamin D? Vitamin E? Is it food? Something simple. Bowl of soup. A nice bowl of soup?"

"How about you let him tell you what he needs?" Tyra pointed out, speaking over the woman with a small shake of her head.

The Doctor breathed out shakily "We haven't got much time. If there's pilot fish, then…" He broke off with a bewildered look on his face, fishing an apple out of the pocket of the dressing gown "Why is there an apple in my dressing gown?"

"Oh, that's Howard," Jackie replied embarrassedly "Sorry."

The Doctor frowned "He keeps apples in his dressing gown?"

"He gets hungry."

"What, he gets hungry in his sleep?" the Doctor repeated incredulously.

Jackie shrugged "Sometimes."

The Doctor cried out, reaching out to grab a hold of Tyra since she was the closest after he shifted walls earlier "Argh! Brain collapsing. The pilot fish. The pilot fish mean that something… something… something… something is coming." He passed out in Tyra's arms for the second time that day.

Tyra sighed and carefully picked him up again, carrying him back to the bed. She watched him worriedly as he shivered, tilting her head to the side, listening to his stuttering heartbeats. By the time Rose had come back with a bowl of water and a rag, one of his hearts had stopped completely.

* * *

Mickey walked into the flat, having run to his flat for his laptop "Jackie, I'm using the phone line. Is that alright?"

"Yeah," Jackie called back from the hallway as Tyra slipped into the living room where Mickey was setting up "Keep a count of it."

Tyra plopped down next to him "What are you doing?"

"Looking up pilot fish," he replied, tying rapidly while Tyra glanced at the TV where the news were once again coming on.

"_Scientists in charge of Britain's mission to Mars have re-established contact with the Guinevere One space probe,_" the reporter was explaining "_They're expecting the first transmission from the planet's surface in the next few minutes._"

The camera cut to the man in charge of the probe "_Yes, we are. We're – we're back on schedule. We've received the signal from Guinevere One. The Mars landing would seem to be an unqualified success._"

"_But is it true that you completely lost contact earlier tonight?_" a man from the crown of reporters shouted.

Llewellyn nodded "_Yes, we had a bit of a scare. Guinevere seemed to fall off the scope but it – it was just a blip. Only disappeared for a few seconds._" He smiled nervously "_She's fine now, absolutely fine. We're getting the first pictures transmitted live any minute now. I'd better get back to it, thanks._"

"Is it just me or was he trying to assure himself?" Tyra muttered, looking away from the screen.

"Here we go," Mickey crowed in victory "Pilot fish. Scavengers, like the Doctor said. Harmless. They're tiny. But the point is, the little fish swim alongside the big fish."

Rose peaked over his shoulder "Do you mean like sharks?"

"Great big sharks," he nodded "So what the Doctor means is, we had them, now we get that."

"Something's coming," Rose murmured in realization "How close?" Mickey shrugged, while Tyra kept her eyes firmly on the TV. A grainy picture appeared on the screen. Whatever it was, it didn't appear to be rocks. At least not rocks from Mars…

"Funny sort of rocks," Jackie remarked.

Tyra shook her head "That's not rocks. And definitely not from Mars."

"_The first photographs. This image is being transmitted via mission control, coming over from the depths of space on Christmas morning._" An angry red-eyed alien with a goat-skull as head appeared when the picture cleared up. It growled and gurgled at the screen before the transmission cut off "_The face of an alien life form was transmitted live tonight on BBC1._"

Rose skipped through the channels "_On the 25__th__ of December, the human race has been shown absolute proof that alien life exists,_" the American newsreader said.

The news started discussing alien life, while Mickey was trying to hack into UNIT for the hundredth time since he met the Doctor "Ty, Rose. Take a look," he gestured "I've got access to the military. They're tracking the spaceship. It's big, fast and it's coming this way."

"Coming for what?" Rose questioned "The Doctor?"

Mickey shrugged "I don't know. Maybe it's coming for all of us." He found a clear image of four of the aliens and looked up "Have you seen them before?"

Tyra shook her head "No. But they look kinda…"

"Weird?" Mickey offered.

Tyra grinned "I was going to say different but weird works just fine."

"Hey, there's a video here," Mickey murmured, clicking on it.

Rose leaned forward, frowning in confusion "I don't understand what it's saying. The Tardis translates alien languages inside my head, all the time, wherever I am."

"So, why isn't it doing it now?" Mickey asked.

"I don't know," Rose shook her head "Must be the Doctor. Like he's part of the circuit and he's – he's broken."

Tyra's head snapped around "He's not broken," she huffed firmly. He told her about former regenerations that got more and more violent. Of course, he never mentioned what to do in case of a regeneration other than that he needed time and rest "The Doctor might look human but he isn't. He'll be fine with a bit of rest."

"You would know," Rose snapped, glaring. Tyra didn't even bother with an answer. Best not to engage Rose when she was acting this way.

"_Despite claims of an alien hoax, it's been reported that NATO forces are on red alert. Speaking strictly off the record, government sources are calling this our longest night._"

Tyra rubbed a hand over her face and yawned a little. The nap she had caught earlier wasn't as refreshing as she had hoped it would be. She barely noticed Rose leaving the room as she sank down on the sofa, hiding her face in one of the pillows.

* * *

The glass of the windows shattered, starling Tyra into falling off the couch "What happened?" she mumbled, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"The spaceship hit the atmosphere," Mickey explained, walking back into the flat "Rose decided that we're better off in the Tardis. Can you carry the Doctor?"

Tyra grumbled, getting up from the floor "I feel like that's becoming something of a habit. Aren't guys supposed to do the heavy lifting?"

"Only if the girls don't have super strength," Mickey teased.

Tyra huffed in mock annoyance and lifted the Doctor for a third – and hopefully last – time, carefully making her way down the steps to where the Tardis was parked. Rose shot her an irritated look when she saw that it was once again Tyra carrying the Doctor and not Mickey like she had asked.

"I don't get why we have to bring that stuff," Rose grunted, struggling with some carrier bags.

"It's food," Jackie explained "You said we need food."

Rose rolled her eyes, leaving the bags she had been carrying on the ground "Just leave it." She unlocked the Tardis door, pushing it open. Tyra stepped inside and shivered a little.

The normally warm and welcoming room was cold with just that hint of defensiveness to it. The Tardis was guiding her Time Lord as much as she could while making sure that he was taken care of. She warmed the grating a little bit when Tyra carefully set the Doctor down.

"No chance you could fly this thing?" Mickey questioned, running his hand over the console lightly.

Rose shook her head "Not anymore, no."

"Well, you did before," Mickey remarked.

"I know but it's sort of been wiped out of my head," she sighed "Like it's forbidden. Try that again and I think the Universe rips in half."

Mickey turned to Tyra "Do you know what happened after Rose came back?"

"Not a single clue. I was a bit busy being dead." Tyra shrugged, leaning back against the console. Jackie went out to fetch more of the bags the others had left outside when Rose started pressing random buttons "Maybe that's not the best idea…"

"It has to work somehow," Rose mumbled, wreaking her brain while trying to remember something.

"Maybe it's a distress signal," Mickey murmured, squinting at the funny language that was shown on the monitor.

Rose rolled her eyes "A far lot of good that's going to do."

Mickey sighed "Are you going to be a misery all the time?"

"Yes."

"You should look at it from my point of view, stuck in here with your mum's cooking," Mickey joked.

Rose looked around "Where is she? I'd better give her a hand… It might start raining missiles out there."

"Tell her anything from a tin, that's fine," Mickey called after her.

Rose shot him a look "Why don't you tell her yourself?"

"I'm not that brave," Mickey whispered to Tyra, winking at her when she choked out a laugh. Rose glanced at the Doctor one last time before she stepped outside. Tyra could just make out Rose being grabbed by one of the aliens from TV before the door got in the way "Rose," Mickey bolted up when he heard the scream "Stay with the Doctor, Tyra." He just managed to close the door before he was being grabbed and pulled away from the Tardis as well.

Tyra looked down at the Doctor and then up at the console "I'm not sure if you can hear me right now but… Can you show me what's going on outside?" she asked the Tardis, hoping against hope that she was getting better. The screen frizzed to life and she could see Rose standing next to Harriet Jones and Indra.

"_The Doctor, is he with you?_" Harriet asked.

Rose shook her head mournfully "_No,_" she sighed "_We're on our own._"

Tyra sneered at the screen in disgust and turned her attention back to the Doctor, listening to the happenings outside with half an ear. There had to be a way to take him up without hurting him. Tyra cursed under her breath when Rose started to mess up badly "Now would be the moment to wake up, Doc… Come on." He didn't even stir and Tyra groaned "I'm sorry for this but…" She placed her hands on either side of the Doctor's face, carefully slipping into his mind. She hated doing it just because most people weren't able to clock her intrusion but she needed the Doctor now, otherwise, the situation would go to hell in minutes.

As soon as she was in place, she opened her eyes and gaped. She was standing in a huge round hall with lots of doors all around. Most of them had numbers on them already but there were two that were still a blank white. The first door was a sort of brown with a large painted One on it. The numbers counted up, all the way to ten, every door being a different style and colour. The fifth door was a dark blueish green that should be holding the Doctor with the decorative vegetables from what Tyra knew. Her hand trailed across the doors and she couldn't help the grin that crossed her face at the sight of the bright orange door of the Sixth Doctor – the one with the Technicolour coat. Seven, eight… Here it was. Nine. She wrapped her hand around the door handle, trying to pull it open. When it wouldn't budge, she frowned. Why was the Ninth Doctor locked away? Wasn't it him that she had met first? Something clicked in her mind as Tyra remembered the lie the Doctor had told her when he mentioned that he was the Ninth body. She shook her head and moved to the next door. There was still time to find out what was behind that door when the situation was less grave.

"I'll definitely miss this you, Doctor but I look forward to what you have to offer now." A feeling washed over her that made her laugh "Yeah, you were fantastic, I know. It was an honour to meet you. You'll always be my first Doctor. Thank you for showing me that things can get better, even if they seem hopeless."

She glanced around the pictures one more time, trailing her hand over them before pulling the door closed behind her. There was no more time… She could vaguely hear Rose digging herself in deeper and deeper and it was only a matter of time until the aliens got tired of her. The next door was one of the two blank ones. Opposed to the others. It was slowly turning into a light grey.

In the room, she could see a still figure floating in the air with closed eyes "Doctor," she called out quietly, stepping into the room.

"Tyra?" he frowned, peeling open one of his eyes "How are you here?"

"No time to explain," she told him "I'm sorry for invading your mind but Rose is getting herself in trouble… She's talking about the Parliament of Raxacoricofallapatorious and the Gelth Confederacy. I'm not sure how long the… was it Sycorax…? How long they'll humour her."

The Doctor raised his head and rolled off whatever he had been laying on before "What is she trying to do?"

"Trying to be you?" she shrugged "Mickey is out there with her along with the Prime Minister and her aide."

"Alright," the Doctor sighed, clapping his hands "Let's get this show on the road."

Tyra swayed in her position on her knees when she found herself back in her own mind, shaking her head to clear it. Being shoved back into her own mind without a warning was a weird experience. Granted, it was a gentle shove but still.

The Doctor was starting to wake up, so Tyra pulled him to his feet quickly. He grinned at her before throwing the door open "Did you miss me?" The Sycorax cracked the whip he was holding which the Doctor caught at the end. His body was blocking Tyra, so he could protect her against whatever was going to happen "You could have someone's eyes out with that."

"How dare…?" the Sycorax leader blustered and gestured another of the aliens who stormed at the Doctor and Tyra with a staff.

The Doctor grabbed it easily, breaking it across his knee "You just can't get the staff," he sighed and pointed at the Sycorax leader "Now, you, just wait. I'm busy." Tyra walked over to Mickey, studying him closely, trying to make sure whether he was alright "Mickey, hello. And Harriet Jones, MP for Flydale North. Blimey, it's like 'This is Your Life'. Thanks for waking me up, Ty." She gave him a thumbs up "Now, first things first. Be honest. How do I look?"

"Er, different," Rose stuttered.

The Doctor frowned, tilting his head "Good different or bad different?"

"Good different," Tyra assured him with a shrug.

He leaned forward "Am I… ginger?"

Rose shook her head "No, you're just sort of brown."

"I wanted to be ginger," the Doctor pouted childishly "I've never been ginger. And you, Rose Tyler, fat lot of good you were. You gave up on me." He blinked "Oh, that's rude. That's the sort of man I am now, am I? Rude. Rude and not ginger…"

"You were rude and not ginger before, Doc. Nothing changed in that department," Tyra pointed out.

Harriet was staring at the new Doctor with a puzzled frown "I'm sorry. Who is this?"

"I'm the Doctor," the Doctor told her.

Rose nodded "He's the Doctor."

"But what happened to my Doctor?" Harriet questioned, turning to Indra who looked similarly confused "Or is it a title that's just passed on?"

"I'm him," the Doctor explained "I'm literally him. Same man, new face. Well, new everything."

Indra scratched his head "But you can't be." He turned to look at Tyra with wide eyes "Can he?"

"He really is," Tyra assured both of them "Hey, Indra. Good to see you again."

The Doctor ignored their interaction, his eyes resting on Harriet Jones "Harriet Jones, we were trapped in Downing Street and the one thing that scared you wasn't the aliens, it wasn't the war. It was the thought of your mother being on her own."

"Oh, my God," Harriet breathed in shock.

"Did you win the election?" the Doctor asked with a gentle smile.

Harriet nodded her head "Landslide majority."

"If I might interrupt," the leader of the Sycorax cleared his throat.

The Doctor turned around "Yes, sorry. Hello, big fellow."

"Who exactly are you?"

"Well, that's the question."

"I demand to know who you are," the Sycorax roared.

"I don't know," the Doctor shouted mischievously "See, there's the thing. I'm the Doctor but beyond that, I just don't know. I literally do not know who I am. It's all untested. Am I funny? Am I sarcastic? Sexy?" He winked at Tyra, causing the girl to let out a small laugh at his flirty behaviour "Right old misery? Life and soul? Right-handed? Left-handed? A gambler? A fighter? A coward? A traitor? A liar? A nervous wreck? I mean, judging by the evidence, I've certainly got a gob. And how am I going to react when I see this, a great big threatening button. A great big threatening button which must not be pressed under any circumstances, am I right? Let me guess. It's some sort of control matrix, hmm? Hold on, what's feeding it?" The Doctor bounded up to where the big red button was situated "And what have we got here? Blood?"

Tyra's nose twitched "A Positive," she grimaced "Not my favourite."

"Yeah, definitely blood," the Doctor remarked, trying to get the taste of blood out of his mouth "Human blood. A positive with just a dash of iron. Ah, but that means blood control. Blood control! Oh, I haven't seen blood control for years. You're controlling all the A Positives. Which leaves us with a great big stinking problem. Because I really don't know who I am. I don't know when to stop. So if I see a great big threatening button which should never, ever, ever be pressed, then I just want to do this." He slammed his hand down on the button.

"No," Rose and Harriet screamed.

"You killed them," Indra breathed in shock.

The Doctor raised his eyebrow at the Sycorax leader, ignoring the outbursts "What do you think, big fellow? Are they dead?"

The Sycorax glared at the Doctor "We allow them to live."

"Allow?" the Doctor snorted "You have no choice. I mean, that all blood control is. A cheap bit of voodoo. Scares the pants off you but that's as far as it goes. It's like hypnosis. You can hypnotise someone to walk like a chicken or sing like Elvis. You can't hypnotise them to death. Survival instinct's too strong."

Tyra tilted her head "I can compel someone to kill themselves."

"Really?" Mickey asked quietly "Did you ever?"

Tyra shrugged "I can't remember. I mean, I know that my siblings did but other than that…"

"Blood control was just one form of conquest," the Sycorax leader grunted "I can summon the armada and take this world by force."

The Doctor hummed "Well, yeah, you could, yeah, you could do that, of course, you could. But why? Look at these people. These human beings. Consider their potential. From the day they arrive on the planet and blinking step into the sun, there is more to see than can ever be seen. More to do than… No, hold on," he broke off with a confused frown "Sorry, that's The Lion King. But the point still stands. Leave them alone!"

"Or what?" the Sycorax dared.

"Or," the Doctor started, pulling free a sword from one of the other aliens that were scattered around "I challenge you." The laughter around the spaceship made him blink "Oh, that struck a chord. Am I right that the sanctified rules of combat still apply?"

The leader grinned viciously "You stand as this world's champion."

"Thank you," the Doctor smiled "I've no idea who I am but you just summed me up." He threw the dressing gown at Tyra "So, you accept my challenge? Or are you just a _cranak pel casacree salvak_?"

Tyra shrugged when Mickey caught her eye. It had to have been an insult judging by the reaction of the Sycorax around them. Even if they couldn't understand it, the meaning behind it was obvious and lead to the leader making up his mind "For the planet?"

"For the planet," the Doctor nodded and so the fight started. Tyra winced at the Doctor's less than stellar stance. He obviously wasn't the best fighter – at least not with a sword but he knew what he was doing.

Outside, the Doctor was driven back to the edge. When Rose made to run forward, the Doctor shouted at her "Stay back. Invalidate the challenge and he wins the planet." The Sycorax leader took advantage of the Doctor's distraction, knocking him down before quickly slashing his sword hand off "You cut my hand off…"

"Ya! Sycorax," the Sycorax leader cheered.

The Doctor stood up, holding up the stump that had held his hand "And now I know what sort of man I am," he proclaimed "I'm lucky. Because quite by chance I'm still within the first fifteen hours of my regeneration cycle, which means I've got enough residual cellular energy to do this." His arm shimmered and slowly his hand was replaced by a new one.

"Witchcraft," the Sycorax accused.

"Time Lord," the Doctor corrected.

Rose grasped a sword from one of the aliens next to her "Doctor," she called, throwing it to him.

"Oh, so I'm still the Doctor, then?" he raised an eyebrow.

"No arguments from me," Rose smiled faintly. She still wasn't too enthusiastic about the New Doctor but she would try. He was charismatic and that helped being around him.

"Want to know the best bit?" the Doctor called to them "This new hand? It's a fightin' hand." The fight started again and sooner rather than later, the Doctor had the Sycorax leader disarmed, thumping both hilts into the alien's abdomen. He fell, almost rolling from the edge of the spaceship "I win."

"Then kill me," the Sycorax spat.

The Doctor shook his head "I'll spare your life if you'll take this Champion's command. Leave this planet and never return. What do you say?"

"Yes."

"Swear on the blood of your species," the Doctor demanded.

The leader nodded reluctantly "I swear."

"There we are, then," the Doctor nodded "Thanks for that. Cheers, big fellow." He turned to walk back to the group and was immediately mobbed by Harriet and Rose.

"Bravo," the Prime Minister clapped.

Rose smiled coyly "That says it all. Bravo."

"Ah, not bad for a man in his jim-jams." He wiggled his eyebrows.

Tyra held out the dressing gown for him "A bit too Arthur Dent in my opinion but yeah, sure. Not bad."

"Now, there was a nice man," the Doctor remembered, tucking his hand into the gown's pockets "Hold on, what have I got in here? A satsuma. Ah, that friend of your mother's. He does like his snacks, doesn't he?" He looked at Rose "But doesn't that just sum up Christmas? You go through all those presents and right at the end, tucked away at the button there's always one stupid old satsuma. Who wants a satsuma?" Behind them, the Sycorax leader got up, grabbing his sword and ran at the Doctor's back. Tyra was ready to step in when the Doctor just threw the satsuma at the control on the spaceship's hull. A piece of the wing opened up, causing the Sycorax to fall to his death "No second chances. I'm that sort of a man." He lead the group back into the spaceship and turned to speak to the remaining aliens "By the ancient rites of combat, I forbid you to scavenge here for the rest of time. And when you go back to the stars and tell others of this planet, when you tell them of its riches, its people, its potential. When you talk of the Earth, then make sure that you tell them this. It is defended."

* * *

Rose looked around when they were back in the streets of London "Where are we?"

"We're just off Bloxom Road," Mickey told her "We're just around the corner. We did it!"

The Doctor stopped their celebration for a moment "Wait a minute, wait a minute." He relaxed when the spaceship flew away quickly.

Mickey restarted his cheering, whirling Tyra around in his arms "Go on, my son. Oh, yeah!"

"Yeah!" Rose added, jumping onto Mickey's back once he had released Tyra "Don't come back." She then pulled Indra into a hug as well, while Tyra stayed off to the side, watching the Doctor hug Harriet.

"Absolutely the same man," Harriet looked up at the Doctor with a smile "Are there many more out there?"

"Oh, not just Sycorax," the Doctor hummed "Hundred of species. Thousands of them. And the Human race is drawing attention to itself. Every day you're sending out probes and messages and signals. This planet is so noisy. You're getting noticed more and more. You'd better get used to it."

"Rose," Jackie shouted, rushing over to them.

Rose grinned at her mother happily "Mum!"

"Oh, talking of trouble," the Doctor mumbled as he was being taken hostage by Jackie.

Tyra's attention was caught by Indra who had walked a few steps to the side to answer a phone call. Her eyes narrowed when she picked up the theme of the call "Don't do it," she warned Harriet quietly when Indra told her that 'Torchwood' was ready "They're leaving."

Harriet stared at the girl silently before turning to face her aide "Tell them to fire."

"Is that how you work, Prime Minister?" Tyra glared at her "This makes me glad that I'm not a British citizen."

"I looked you up, you know," Harriet said with an edge of a threat to her voice "Do you want to know what I found?"

Tyra narrowed her eyes "Are you threatening me, Harriet Jones?"

"I don't know," she raised her eyebrow at the same time as five green beams of light streaked up into the sky. Within a minute, the Sycorax ship was completely gone. They were all dead…

The Doctor stalked over to Harriet, a murderous look on his face "That was murder."

"It was defence," she retorted "It's adapted from alien technology. A shop that fell to Earth ten years ago."

"But they were leaving," the Doctor gestured, sounding incredulous. Hadn't he just praised Harriet for what good she had done to the country?

Harriet shook her head "You said it yourself, Doctor, they'd go back to the stars and tell others about the Earth. I'm sorry, Doctor, Tyra, but you're not here all the time. You come and go. It happened today. Mister Llewellyn and the Major, they were murdered. They died right in front of me while you were sleeping. In which case we have to defend ourselves."

"Britain's Golden Age," the Doctor spat.

Tyra sneered at both the Prime Minister and Indra for a moment before she whirled around. While she had done her fair share of inexcusable things, she never ever would kill someone with their back turned. Not even if she was attacked. Killing someone when they weren't looking wasn't honourable at all. It went against everything that had been ingrained in her so long ago. If Mikael had taught her anything – anything at all, it was that honour was important even if it came from a man who hit his children, killed them and for good measures hunted them.

Mickey wrapped his arm around Tyra's shoulders while they waited for the Doctor to finish threatening Harriet and walk back over to them. Harriet kept shouting after the small group until they were out of sight.

* * *

After the Doctor went to get dressed and the two Tylers and Mickey went back to the Tyler's flat, Tyra retreated to her room. She didn't want to intrude on their Christmas… Moments like these made her miss her siblings more than she already did. While they fought a lot, family was everything to her. She might not like them all that much sometimes but she loved them. They were all she had left, so she really hoped that they would be able to be a real family again soon.

She stared at the ceiling of her room for a while, lost in memories of the past. A while later, Tyra shook herself out of the past and went to walk out of the Tardis. While she had never celebrated Christmas or anything, she loved seeing the world quiet, celebrating. There were red and green lights everywhere and Christmas music was drifting down from several windows. She closed her eyes and leaned back against the Tardis, letting the impressions wash over her.

"Ty," Mickey called "Why are you down here?"

Tyra shrugged "I doubt I'm being missed."

He frowned at her "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Tyra smiled, trying to look as reassuring as she could "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You do know that you can come and eat with us, right?" Mickey asked.

Tyra shook her head "It's Rose's family. Even earlier… I don't fit in here, Mickey. Maybe I should just do everyone the favour and leave again. Better than them having to put up with a monster that happened to suck blood."

Mickey rested his hands on her shoulders, shaking her lightly "You're not a monster. I don't know why it's taking this long to get through that thick head of yours."

"Always need to hear it one more time," Tyra quipped with a sad smile "You should go back before you're missed."

"I don't want to leave you on your own," he admitted and looked up at the flat "They can do without me for a while." Tyra rested her head on his shoulder lightly, just enjoying the company for a few more moments before Mickey started talking again "You should tell the Doctor, you know?"

"Hm?" she hummed questioningly.

"About how Rose is treating you," Mickey pointed out "That she slapped you and baited you…"

Tyra frowned "Why would I tell him about that? It's taken care of… It's fine, Mickey."

"You shouldn't let Rose walk over you," he sighed.

"If there's anything I don't let people do, it is to walk over me," Tyra snorted "I don't care what Rose thinks about me. She is entitled to her own opinion. If she won't drop it… Well, we'll just have to see how much she pisses me off, won't we?"

He hesitated for a moment but then nodded in defeat "If you're sure."

Tyra looked up at him "Weill you come with us? I mean, I know that you said you didn't want to but…"

"I'll think about it, okay?"

She nodded "You really should go back… I'll be fine on my own, I promise."

Mickey was reluctant to leave her but in the end, he ruffled Tyra's hair and walked back towards the door "I expect to see you before you guys leave."

"Yes, sir," she saluted playfully, leaning back against the Tardis for a few more minutes before she unlocked the door, deciding to wander the halls for a little while.

* * *

When the Doctor had changed into his new clothes, a brown suit and the coat that Janis Joplin gave him a while back, he went up to the flat to suffer through some domestics. He was confused and slightly worried when he didn't see Tyra anywhere but when no one mentioned her absence he decided to keep quiet for now. Not because he didn't want her there but out of respect for Tyra. She wouldn't want him to draw the attention to her nonexistent presence.

Mickey frowned at the door and stood up immediately after they finished eating. Through the window, he saw Tyra leaning against the side of the Tardis with her eyes closed. She looked a little lonely, so without mentioning anything to the others, he decided to join her for a little while. The boy wanted to talk to the vampire about something anyway.

What he didn't notice though was that the Time Lord had watched him and with a short glance out of the window, he followed Mickey down when the two Tyler women were otherwise occupied. The Doctor stayed back, out of sight of the two, just listening to what they were saying. How had he never noticed that Tyra was feeling this way? Now that the Doctor thought back, he could see that she had held back a lot. Maybe he could change that though… The girl deserved a second chance and he would make sure that she enjoyed it. She was also one of the only ones of his Companions who could stay with him for however long either of them wanted. When they quieted down, he was about to announce his presence but froze at the next words that came out of Mickey's mouth. Tell him what? Didn't she want to travel with him anymore? Tyra had said that she would still like to continue travelling with him but now he wasn't sure whether she had changed her mind.

"About how Rose is treating her," Mickey said "That she slapped you and baited you…" Rose did what now? The Doctor leaned against the wall in front of him, trying to wrap his head around what he was hearing. He would definitely have to talk to the blonde about that. If there was one thing he didn't accept was his Companions hurting each other.

The Doctor smiled at the girl's honesty when she asked whether Mickey wanted to come with them. Even though the Time Lord liked to mess with the boy, he was actually pretty clever and it was nice to see Tyra getting along with him. They really hit it off and that was something he thought the youngest Original needed. Before Mickey could run into him, the Doctor walked back to the flat, thoughts on what to do about the situation.

"Where have you been?" Rose frowned, crossing her arms "And where did Mickey go?"

"He'll be back in a moment," the Doctor said, running his hands through his hair. How to start this conversation? He looked up at Mickey when the boy returned quietly. The Time Lord was quiet for a few more minutes "Listen, Rose…"

Jackie cut in before he could continue, holding the phone to her ear "It's Bev. She says go and look outside."

Rose looked from the Doctor to her mother "Why?"

"I don't know," the older blonde shook her head "Just go outside and look. Come on, shift." She ushered the other three out of the door. Compared to five minutes ago, the ground was covered with white flakes falling from the sky. Streaks of light crisscrossed the sky and it looked like a Christmas dream come true for everyone but the Doctor.

Rose gasped in delight "Oh, it's beautiful. What are they, meteors?"

"It's the spaceship breaking up in the atmosphere. This isn't snow, it's ash."

"Okay, not so beautiful," the younger blonde mumbled, her smile fading.

The Doctor shook his head "This is a brand new planet Earth. No denying the existence of aliens now. Everyone saw it. Everything's new."

"What about you?" Rose questioned nervously "What are you going to do next?"

"Well, back to the Tardis," he shrugged "Same old life."

Rose hummed "On your own?"

"Well, Tyra is still there… Do you still want to come?" the Doctor asked, looking down at the blonde.

Rose nodded "Yeah. There is something I have to tell you though…"

"What is it?" the Doctor blinked. Was she going to tell him about slapping Tyra?

"Tyra compelled me when you were unconscious," Rose told him with a small pout on her face.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. Was that what Tyra had meant when she told Mickey that she handled it? "What did you do, Rose? I know Tyra and she wouldn't just compel someone because she felt like it."

"I didn't do anything," she protested

"Rose, did you slap Tyra?" the Doctor asked, crossing his arms.

The blonde hesitated "What? No! Why? What did she tell you?"

Mickey made a noise at the back of his throat. He had heard everything the two had talked about. While he wasn't too happy that the Doctor had listened to him and Ty talk earlier, he was glad that the Time Lord knew what Rose did "You slapped her, Rose and that's why she compelled you."

The Doctor sighed "If you really want to come with me, I want you to apologize to Tyra tomorrow, alright?"

"Fine," Rose agreed reluctantly.

"Thank you," the Doctor smiled, forgiving the blonde for what she did. After all, his change probably shocked her quite a bit. Tyra knew what was going on, Rose, on the other hand, had no idea.

Half an hour later, the Doctor excused himself to look for Tyra. He really needed to talk to her now… Not only about what he overheard but also about earlier that day when she woke him up… He needed to know what she saw in his mind. Tyra didn't mention anything but that told him that he would definitely tell her what she wanted to know.

It took him a lot longer to find her than expected but he after the Doctor threatened the Tardis, she showed him to where she had stuck the Chinese gardens. He smiled when he saw Tyra lying on the grass with her eyes closed. She looked more relaxed than he saw her in a while although there was a certain sadness in her… He padded over to her, sitting down next to her head "Hey."

"Hi," she breathed, opening her eyes to look at him for a moment "How was dinner?"

"Domestics," he shrugged a bit awkwardly "Still not a fan."

Tyra hummed "I think you're going to have to get used to it. From what I've seen of Jackie, she seems somewhat fixated on you.

The Doctor snorted "Don't sell yourself short. As far as she told me, you made an impression as well…"

"I'm sure," Tyra muttered bitterly. Must have been the part where she attacked Rose or snapped at Jackie. She was sure that it had been a really great impression.

"Ty," the Doctor sighed, reaching out to tug at her long hair "When you were talking to Mickey earlier… I heard."

She closed her eyes "So? Are you going to tell me to leave now?"

"What? No!" the Doctor denied and stood up. He stuck out his hand pulled Tyra up when she put her smaller one into his "Come on. I want to show you something." He lead her to a Chinese pavilion that was situated towards the back end of the garden. The pavilion was a small red structure with a typically Chinese roof "Sit."

"What are you doing?" Tyra frowned in confusion when he dropped down across from her.

The Doctor smiled at her "I wanted to talk to you about what you saw in there." He tapped the side of his head "And I thought you'd prefer it to be more comfortable than some metal grating."

"You don't have to tell me anything," she shook her head "I had no right to go into your head in the first place."

"You woke me up in time," he corrected gently "Also, I might need to talk about what happened to someone and you are probably one of the few people who understand. Plus, I bet you're curious."

"Of course I am," Tyra huffed before dropping her hands onto her lap "If you're sure?"

"I am. Come here." The Doctor pulled at her hands, getting the girl to scoot a little closer to him. He then raised her hands to his temples and looked into her eyes "Go on," he urged.

"I –"

The Doctor rolled his eyes in fond exasperation "Just do it, will you?"

"Fine," she grumbled and closed her eyes, concentrating on slipping back into his mind. This time she didn't land in the middle of the round corridor, rather she was standing inside the eleventh room that she had found the Doctor in earlier. The only difference to last time was that the door behind her was a brilliant midnight blue colour now and a few odd pictures were dotted around the walls "Now what?"

The Doctor pulled her out of the door "I'm not sure if you've seen but behind all of these doors are my previous selves."

"I saw," Tyra nodded, running her hand over the Tenth door "You really were fantastic, you know?"

"Oh?"

She nodded "Even though you saw so much, you still found joy in the smallest of things. You showed me that it was alright to leave the past behind for a while…"

The Doctor looked down at her with a big grin "You should give yourself more credit than that. I saw you smile more in the past two months than in the first half a year you were here."

"Maybe," she shrugged "Can I ask about this door?" She pointed to the ninth door that was still locked "You lied about your previous body being the ninth, right? This was the ninth. The body you had during the War."

"Ah," the Doctor sighed with a small wince "I don't like to acknowledge… He wasn't the Doctor. He broke all the promises I ever made when I took the name. The Warrior is the one who ended it all. He eradicated every Time Lord, ever Time Lady and all the children."

"I know that you think about it like this but there's something else you have to realize," she murmured, taking her hands from his face "If you hadn't done what you did the whole universe would have suffered and many planets would have died by the hands… plungers of the Daleks. It doesn't make it alright or make it better but you had no choice."

The Doctor exhaled shakily and pulled Tyra into his lap, hugging the stuffing out of her "Thank you, Ty. I'm glad that I can talk to you…"

"I – I don't mind listening since you do the same thing for me," she whispered, burying her face in the Doctor's shoulder to take in his scent.

**Omake**

Klaus looked around the estate with a small grimace. He hated areas like these but he was here for a reason after all. One of his contacts told him that Tyra was here and he was intent on finding her. How the little sneak had been able to avoid her for the past century, he'll never know but Klaus could admit that he was impressed. With Katerina, he didn't really put his full effort into finding her because he knew that she would be helpful someday. Tyra, though, she was different. She was his baby sister and he wanted her back with him.

"Excuse me," he called out when he saw a dark-skinned boy walking out of the house in front of him. His nose caught a whiff of the boy's scent that held something familiar. There was a hint of Tyra on him.

Mickey stopped, looking at the blond man curiously. He looked out of place here "Can I help you?"

Klaus nodded "I'm looking for my sister. You might know her."

"Ah, I don't know if I'll be able to help you," Mickey told him, getting a bad feeling about this. The man had a familiar aura around him. Something that reminded him of something but he couldn't place it "I'm sorry. I have to get to work."

"Where is my sister?" Klaus demanded, speeding in front of the boy to cut him off "I can smell her on you."

Mickey swallowed, trying not to show the fear he was feeling. That was who the guy reminded him off. He was one of Tyra's brothers, although they looked nothing alike "You're Tyra's brother."

Klaus smirked "I knew you would be able to help me." He stared into the boy's eyes "Now. Where. Is. My. Sister?"

"Gone," Mickey said, unable to control the words coming from his mouth "She left with the Doctor a few days ago. I don't know when they'll be back."

"Dammit," Klaus cursed under his breath. He missed her again. And he had been so close now… "Forget that you saw me… Actually, no. You're welcome to tell my sister about this. Tell her that I'm looking for her and that I'm getting impatient. I want to talk to her."


	3. New Earth

"Have you got everything?" Jackie questioned, fretting over Rose who had a huge bag with her.

Tyra glanced over at them and rolled her eyes. At least she knew where Rose had gotten her dramatic nature from "We'll keep in touch, right?" she asked Mickey, looking up at him.

"Sure," he grinned, pulling Tyra into a big hug "What kind of friend would I be if I just abandoned you? Hey, how was your talk with the Doctor last night?"

"We talked," Tyra shrugged "I'm not sure what you want me to tell you."

Mickey laughed "Details. I want details."

"Not gonna happen," she snorted, shaking her head "But Mickey… Thanks for yesterday."

"Not for this," he shook his head "That's what friends are for."

Tyra sent him a small smile "Thank you." She waved at Jackie and fist-bumped Mickey before slipping through the doors of the Tardis while Rose was still saying goodbye to her mother.

The Doctor looked up when he heard the door open "Rose still outside?"

"Yup," Tyra nodded, slumping down on the jump seat "Not sure how long she's going to be."

"Alright," the Doctor shrugged, pulling Tyra up. He ignored her protests and prodded her over to the console "Come here for a moment. Here…" He started explaining several buttons and levers "To power up the Tardis you need to pull these down, this up and press the green button."

Tyra frowned "Why are you showing me this?"

He shrugged "I think you deserve a little lesson, don't you? Depending on how you do, maybe we'll continue."

Tyra bit her lip, watching him righten the levers again. When he raised his eyebrow in questions, she sighed and repeated what he told her "These two down, this up and the green button. That's just the powering up, right? Cause I vaguely remember you and Jack doing something that that red button and the levers over there."

"That's for later on. But I'm impressed," the Doctor grinned, ruffling her hair "I'll tell you about what all of the levers and buttons mean another time."

A small amused huff inside Tyra's head made her look up "I don't think she agrees with you, Doc," Tyra laughed a little "Do you even know what all of those buttons do?"

"Of course, I do," the Doctor huffed, rubbing the back of his neck. He honestly didn't know what a few of them did but he usually just winged it and so far it had worked "Oh look, I think Rose is done now. Finally."

The Tardis laughed to herself. Her Thief had no idea. Yes, he could fly her. Not particularly well but it worked. She just didn't much care for where he wanted to go. She had always taken him to where he had to be, not where he wanted to be. It was just who she was. Not that her Thief minded and she got the impression that Tyra was figuring that out as well. Tyra was one of her favourites… is one of her favourites… will be? She watched as Tyra darted forward, hugging her Thief for a moment before backing off just as quickly. Those two were going to face a lot of adventures together yet. The Tardis couldn't wait to see it. It would be beautiful.

Rose ran inside, dropping her bag to the floor with a loud clang "So, where are we going?"

"Further than we've ever gone before," the Doctor grinned, pointing Tyra to the lever she had asked about earlier "Let's do this." He hit some buttons before nodding to Tyra. She pulled, propelling them into the Time Vortex. The Doctor landed the Tardis, materialising across the river from a massive city "It's the year five billion and twenty-three. We're in the galaxy M87 and this? This is New Earth."

"Wait… Isn't that just…" Tyra furrowed her brow, counting the years "What? Twenty-three years past the explosion of the Earth?"

The Doctor smirked a little "Hence the New Earth thing."

"Oh, shut up," she grumbled, throwing herself onto the grass a little way away from the Tardis. She inhaled deeply, watching the cars fly by overhead.

Rose turned to look at the Doctor with a huge grin "That's amazing. I'll never get used to this. Never. Different ground beneath my feet, different sky." She sniffed the air "What's that smell?"

"Apple?" Tyra murmured to herself, smelling at a few blades of grass.

"Apple grass," the Doctor explained, making his way over to where Tyra was laying.

Rose latched onto his arm "It's beautiful. Oh, I love this. Can I just say, travelling with you, I love it."

The Doctor freed his arm carefully and smiled at Rose "Me too." He then shrugged off his jacket, spreading it out next to Tyra "So, as you said, Ty… In the year five billion, the sun expands, the Earth gets roasted.

Tyra yelped in surprise when the Doctor's arms snaked underneath her, depositing her on top of the spread out jacket "Doctor," she groaned in annoyance.

He smirked, not noticing the way Rose was glaring at their interaction "So anyway, planet gone, all rocks and dust but the human race lives on, spread out across the stars. Soon as the Earth burnt up, oh yeah, they get all nostalgic, big reveal moment but they find this place. Same size as the Earth, same air, same orbit. Lovely. Call goes out, the humans move in."

"What's the city called?" Rose questioned, drawing the Doctor's attention to her.

"New New York."

Rose scoffed "Oh, come on."

"Why not?" Tyra frowned at her "I mean New York was New Amsterdam once… There's New Orleans named after Orleans in France. Or more like the city we moved from before building New Orleans… I don't doubt that people would want another New York. It is the city that never sleeps after all."

"Well, strictly speaking, it's the fifteenth New York since the original, so that makes it New New New New New New New New New New New New New New York. Wait?" He stopped and stared at Tyra with wide eyes "Did you just say that you built New Orleans?"

Tyra stopped short "Long story…"

"We have time," he waved.

"Fine," she huffed "We came back to America in the 1800s and decided to venture further into the country than we had been before. We helped with the planning of the French Quarter and helped several vampire, werewolves and witches to settle down in the Quarter under the rule of my brother. We are well known by the Supernatural side of New Orleans."

The Doctor pouted when Tyra stopped talking "And? Come on, continue talking."

Tyra just shook her head "Story for another time."

"Aw," he mumbled, his face falling before catching the look Rose sent him "What?"

She shook her head dismissively "You're so different."

Tyra nudged his side "New New Doctor, don't you think? Or would that be New New New New New New New New New New Doctor?"

"I think New New Doctor is more than enough," he snorted "How many 'New's was that?"

Tyra shrugged "Lost count… Sorry."

Rose jumped up from the other side of the coat "Can we go and visit New New York? So good they named it twice."

"Well, I thought we might go there first," the Doctor pointed, fighting to get into his coat as it was flapping in the wind. Tyra followed his finger and caught sight of an elegant pair of curved skyscrapers standing apart from the city on their side of the river.

Rose tilted her head "Why? What is it?"

"Some sort of hospital," the Doctor explained "Green moon on the side. That's the universal symbol for hospitals. I got this… A message on the psychic paper." He flipped open the wallet "Someone wants to see me."

"Hm," Rose hummed, unsure if she should be annoyed or happy that they didn't come here just for the sake of it "And I thought we were just sight-seeing." She let out a huge, slightly too dramatic sigh and turned to walk off "Come on then. Let's go and buy some grapes."

Tyra looked up at the sky, walking next to the Doctor "You know," she started quietly "In the 20th-century people thought by the early 21st century the cars would fly… It's kind of fascinating to see the advancements in technology so far into the future…"

* * *

The Doctor looked around anxiously "Why did it have to be a hospital?" he grumbled, shivering at the white. White everywhere.

Rose scoffed at him "Bit rich coming from you."

"I can't help it," he exclaimed "I don't like hospitals. They give me the creeps…"

'_The Pleasure Gardens will now take visitors carrying green or blue identification cards for the next fifteen minutes. Visitors are reminded that cuttings from the gardens are not permitted,_' a voice called over the tannoy.

Tyra looked around, easily keeping pace with the Doctor while she did. She froze for a millisecond when a cat-nurse-nun person walked past her.

Rose followed the other two, tilting her head "Very smart… Not exactly NHS."

"No shop," the Doctor pouted "I like the little shop."

Rose ignored his pouting "I thought this far in the future, they'd have cured everything."

"That's what the doctors thought back in the days but more viruses appeared the more medicine evolved," Tyra pointed out, remembering the time of the Black Death. Today, the Plague could possibly be treated with antibiotics but back then it was a sure death sentence.

"The human race moves on but so do the viruses… It's an ongoing war," the Doctor added.

Rose finally noticed that the nursing staff were cats as another one walked by the small group in all her nun-like glory. Her eyes widened, staring after the cat-nurse-nun "They're cats."

"Now, don't stare," the Doctor admonished "Think what you look like to them, all pink and yellow… That's where I'd put the shop." He pointed at a corner of the reception, striding one of the elevators "Right there." Tyra quickly followed him into the elevator and looked back at Rose who was still looking in the direction the nurse had disappeared "Ward 26, thanks."

"Hold on! Hold on," Rose shouted, running in our direction just as the doors closed.

The Doctor pressed his ear to the doors "Oh, too late. We're going up."

"It's alright," Rose called up to them "There's another lift."

"Ward 26," the Doctor reminded "And watch out for the disinfectant."

"What out for what?" Tyra wondered, tensing a little. The way the Doctor had said that… She wasn't sure whether she wanted to know but if he warned Rose there had to be a good chance that it would affect them in some way too.

The Doctor was still pressed against the elevator door "The disinfectant."

"That what?" Rose called again.

"The dis…" the Doctor broke off and sighed "Oh, you'll find out."

'_Commence stage one disinfection._' The voice sounded over the speaker right before Tyra could ask what the Doctor was talking about. Icy cold water shot from the walls and the ceiling, causing her to jump. She glared at the Doctor who just started running his hand through his hair. After a very aggressive blow dry, a white powder was dumped on them, causing Tyra to let out a loud sneeze as it went right up her nose.

As soon as the two of them had gotten off the elevator, she slugged the Doctor in the stomach "I hate you so much right now."

"What did I do?" he grinned, tugging at Tyra's still slightly damp hair.

"You could have warned me for one," she grumbled when we started following a veiled nurse around the ward.

The Doctor quickly explained the situation and looked around "Nice place. No shop, downstairs. I'd have a shop. Not a big one… Just a shop, so people can shop."

"Oh, you definitely have a gob now," Tyra muttered, turning to the cat-nun-nurse with her charm dialled all the way up "You'll have to excuse him. He doesn't know when to let things go."

"Hey," he exclaimed "That isn't very nice."

Tyra raised an eyebrow "But very true."

The nurse removed her veil "The hospital is a place of healing," she told the Doctor sharply.

"A shop does some people the world of good," the Doctor defended himself "Not me… Other people."

"The Sisters of Plentitude take a lifelong vow to help and to med," the cat-nun-nurse told them.

Tyra perked up in interest "Can I ask you something?" When she nodded, Tyra continued "Are you an order of nuns who happen to be nurses or are you both?"

"Our order has devoted itself to healing the sick," she explained, ushering the two past an open cubicle.

"Excuse me," a woman shrieked when she caught the Doctor's eyes "Members of the public may only gaze upon the Duke of Manhattan with written permission from the Senate of New New York."

The Doctor looked at the overweight man on the bed curiously "That's Petrifold Regression, right?"

"I'm dying, sir," the Duke nodded "A lifetime of charity and abstinence and it ends like this…"

Tyra rolled her eyes when the woman with him straightened up, crossing her arms importantly "Any statements made by the Duke of Manhattan may not be made public without official clearance."

"What's Petrifold Regression?" Tyra asked quietly when Sister Jatt waved at them to follow.

"He'll be up in no time," the cat-nun-nurse told them.

The Doctor let out a noise from the back of the throat "I doubt it. Petrifold Regression?" He looked at Tyra when he said the next part "He's turning to stone. There won't be a cure for oh – a thousand years? He might be up and about but only as a statue."

"Have faith in the Sisterhood," Sister Jatt smiled "But is there no one here you recognise? It's rather unusual to visit without knowing the patient."

The Doctor poked Tyra's side when he caught sight of the person who they were here for. He pointed to the large glass container when Tyra turned her head to look up at him "I think I've found him."

"Novice Hame," Sister Jatt spoke up, nodding at the other nurse who was sitting next to the glass tank "If I can leave this gentleman and the lady in your care?"

Before she could walk away, the Doctor stopped her "Oh, I think our friend got lost. Rose Tyler. Could you ask at reception?"

"Certainly, sir," she replied with a fake smile.

Tyra leaned over to him with a conspiring grin "I think you annoyed her," she whispered.

"I did not," he huffed.

"Face it, Doctor, you definitely do," Tyra pointed out.

Novice Hame tilted her head at them "I'm afraid the Face of Boe is asleep. That's all he tends to do these days. Are you friends… or?"

"We just met once," the Doctor murmured "On Platform One. What's wrong with him?"

"I'm so sorry," the cat-nun-nurse breathed "I thought you knew."

"Knew what?" Tyra questioned, kneeling down in front of the tank.

Novice Hame bit her lip "The Face of Boe is dying."

"Of what?"

"Old age," she shrugged "The one thing we can't cure. He's thousands of years old. Some people say millions, although that's impossible."

The Doctor looked down at Tyra and Boe before kneeling down next to them "Oh, I don't know." He wrapped his arm around Tyra's shoulders "I like impossible." He turned his attention to Boe "I'm here," he whispered "And Ty too. I look a bit different but it's me… It's the Doctor."

* * *

'_Hope, harmony and health. Hope, harmony and health._' The Doctor walked back towards the Face of Boe's tank with two cones of water in his hands. He handed one to Hame while holding the other one out for Tyra.

Tyra took a few small sips before handing it back with a quiet "Thanks."

"That's very kind," Novice Hame smiled, clutching the cup "There's no need."

"You're the one working," the Doctor pointed out, taking a gulp of the cup he took back from the vampire.

Hame shook her head "There's not much to do, just maintain his smoke. And I suppose I'm company. I can hear him singing sometimes, in my mind. Such ancient songs."

"Are we the only visitors?" the Doctor questioned curiously.

"The rest of Boe-kind became extinct long ago. He's the only one left," Novice Hame explained "Legends says that the Face of Boe has watched the universe grow old. There are all sorts of superstitions around him. One story says that just before his death, the Face of Boe will impart his great secret, that he will speak those words only to one like himself."

The Doctor tilted his head "What does that mean?"

"It's just a story," Hame shrugged.

"Tell me the rest."

"It's said he'll talk to a wanderer," the nurse said "To the man without a home. The lonely God and his Warrior." Tyra stood up and grasped the Doctor's hand, squeezing it comfortingly.

The Doctor was silent for a little moment before he blinked back the dark emotions "Where the hell is Rose?"

"I don't know… Do you want me to call her?" Tyra asked, frowning around the ward. Rose shouldn't have taken this long. She handed her phone to the Doctor when he held out his hand.

He quickly found Rose's number and held the phone to his ear "Rose, where are you?"

"_How does she speak?_" Tyra blinked and tilted her head at the quiet hiss on the other side of the line.

A man's voice whispered, equally as muffled "_Old Earth Cockney._"

"_Er, wotcha,_" Rose said. Tyra raised an eyebrow. That wasn't Rose but then there was the question of who it was if not Rose. Tyra knew that possession was possible through magic but maybe there was a science-y way as well? Around the Doctor, it was usually aliens.

"Where have you been?" the Doctor continued "How long does it take to get to Ward 26?"

Rose hummed "_I'm on my way, governor. I shall proceed up the apples and pears._"

The Doctor shared a confused look with Tyra, mouthing 'apples and pears' at her. She shrugged and he repeated the gesture with a perplexed expression on his face "You'll never guess. I'm with the Face of Boe. Remember him?"

"_Of course I do,_" Rose's voice pitched a little, telling Tyra that she had no idea what the Doctor was on about "_That big old… boat… race…_"

It was then that the two in Ward 26 noticed loud, happy voices coming from the direction of the Duke of Manhattan "I'd better go," the Doctor muttered into the phone "See you in a minute." He hung up and slipped the phone back to Tyra.

"Didn't think I was going to make it," the Duke exclaimed cheerfully "It's that man and the woman again. They're my good luck charms. Come in. Don't be shy."

"Doctor?" Tyra spoke up, her mind going over the phone call again and again. She ignored Clovis' nattering "I feel like that wasn't really R…"

Clovis cut her off "Any friend expressed by the Duke of Manhattan does not constitute a form of legal contract."

"You're kidding, right?" Tyra huffed, glaring at the woman in annoyance "I. Don't. Care."

"Tyra," the Doctor scolded, hitting her on the back of the head.

Tyra rubbed at the back of her head "What? It's not like I'm wrong. She's been going at us since we stepped a foot in here. Can you honestly tell me that you care that he's the Duke of Manhattan?"

"Still," he sighed, waving off the waiter with the champagne just as Tyra was reaching out to grab the glass "You had Petrifold Regression, right?"

"That being the operative word. Past tense. Completely cured," the Duke nodded.

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair before shaking his head "But that's impossible."

"Primitive species would accuse us of magic," another cat-nun-nurse spoke up from behind. She was looking at the Doctor with smug satisfaction "But it's merely the tender application of science."

"How on Earth did you cure him?" the Doctor demanded.

The cat-nun-nurse looked up at him "How on New Earth, you might say."

"What's in that solution?" the Doctor followed his demand with another.

"A simple remedy."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes "Then tell me what it is."

"I'm sorry," she shook her head "Patient confidentiality. I don't believe we've met. My name is Matron Casp."

"I'm the Doctor," the Doctor introduced himself "That's Tyra."

Matron Casp sniffed at him "I think you'll find that we're the doctors here."

Sister Jatt hurried up to her supervisor "Matron Casp, you're needed in Intensive Care."

Casp tensed "If you would excuse me."

"It's happened again," Sister Jatt whispered, causing Tyra's head to snap around to her "One of the patients is conscious."

Matron Casp tutted "Oh, we can't have that…"

Tyra grasped the Doctor's arm and pulled him along back to where the elevators were "There's something wrong here," she told him "Why the hell can't things ever go smoothly around you?"

"What do you mean?" he questioned, ignoring the second part of her comment.

"Well, there's Rose for one. You can't tell me you didn't notice how she behaved on the phone… And then there's that." She pointed in the direction where the two cat-nun-nurses had just vanished in "They are keeping something from the people of New Earth. I don't know what it is but that one nurse had the smell of death clinging to her."

The Doctor nodded thoughtfully before pointing to a person who was floating in midair "Look at this." He looked to Rose when she joined them by the bed "There you are. Come and look at this patient. Marconi's Disease. Should take years to recover. Two days. I've never seen anything like it. They've invented a cell washing cascade. It's amazing. Their medical science is way advanced. And this one." The Doctor pulled the two girls to another cubicle he had checked out while getting the water "Pallidome Pancrosis. Kills you in ten minutes and he's fine. I need to find a terminal. I've got to see how they do this. Because if they've got the best medicine in the world, then why is it such a secret?"

Not-Rose threw him an annoyed look and really, it was all the more obvious that it wasn't actually Rose inside that body. At least to Tyra, it was. She had seen Niklaus in different bodies several times and he always managed to at least fool most people around the possessed person "I can't Adam and Eve it."

"What's – What's – What's with the voice?" the Doctor stuttered, frowning at Rose.

"Oh, I don't know," she waved off "Just larking about. New Earth, new me."

The Doctor snorted "Well, I can talk. New New Doctor."

"Mm," Rose smirked, looking the Doctor up and down appreciatively "Aren't you just?" She grabbed the Doctor and pulled him down into a long and hard kiss "Terminal's this way."

The Doctor stared at Tyra with big eyes and looked at Rose's back "What just happened?"

"You got kissed by whoever or whatever is inside of Rose," Tyra pointed out, mischief lighting up her eyes "Your face, though."

"How do you know about possession?" the Doctor frowned "That technology wasn't around in your time."

Tyra smiled mysteriously before she shrugged "Magic." When the Doctor opened his mouth to say something "Let's go and see what Not-Rose is up to."

They found her in the waiting room where a computer terminal was located by the elevator "Nope," the Doctor shook his head after sonicking the terminal "Nothing odd. Surgery, post-op, nano-dentistry. No sign of a shop. They should have a shop."

"No, it's missing something else," Not-Rose pointed out.

Tyra hummed "Intensive Care, right? The cat-nun-nurses mentioned it earlier. Something about a patient being awake and how they couldn't have that. It was weird."

"You're both right," the Doctor nodded, trying not to stare at Rose with too much suspicion.

"Why would they hide a whole department?" Not-Rose tilted her head "It's got to be there somewhere. Search the sub-frame."

The Doctor raised his eyebrow "What if the sub-frame is locked?"

"Try the installation protocol."

The Doctor nodded, very much suspicious now. If he had been doubtful before, it was gone now. This wasn't Rose "Yeah… Of course. Sorry, hold on," he murmured, using his sonic on the interface, causing the whole wall to slide down to reveal a corridor. The Doctor raised his eyebrows "Intensive Care. Certainly looks intensive."

Tyra was about to follow the Doctor into the corridor when she froze. A slow melody echoed through her mind, the voice humming it deep and familiar "Doctor? I'll join you in a moment. There's something I want to check out."

"Is everything alright? What did you hear?" the Doctor asked, leaning closer to her in concern.

"Nothing, nothing," she shook her head, not very convincingly "It's fine, Doc." She nudged him further into the corridor "I promise that I'll be there in a moment." The Doctor nodded, turning to walk off with Not-Rose following, while Tyra turned back. She raised a hand to her forehead and shook her head in exasperation "Is that really necessary?" she huffed, glaring at the tank as soon as she came back into view of the Face of Boe.

'_It is good to see you again, old friend,_' Boe greeted as the humming stopped.

"We literally met once," Tyra frowned "How are we 'old friends'?"

'_You will find out in your future, my past,_' Boe whispered into her mind. He enjoyed toying with Tyra while she was still this young, this unburdened. Of course, she would laugh if she could hear that, say that she was anything but unburdened but she didn't know yet. She didn't know what was to come. Boe wished that he could tell her, make her avoid breaking but he couldn't. It was meant to happen whether he liked it or not '_The solution you are seeking is closer than you think, little Warrior._'

Tyra blinked at him. Warrior? It reminded her of Jack and how he always called her Valkyrie but… No, it couldn't be, right? Jack died on the Game Station. There was no way for the Face of Boe to be him… Was there? "I –"

Boe cut her off '_Don't worry about the solution. It will show itself someday… Listen, little Warrior. I can't tell you what I wish I could but there is something you need to know._' He paused for a moment, steeling himself '_I'm really, really sorry but your greatest fear will be returning._'

"My greatest fear? What do you mean by that?" she tilted her head.

'_This is all that I can tell you,_' Boe sighed '_I'm sorry._'

Tyra nodded, her mind going into overdrive at the Face of Boe's words. What did he mean? Did she really want to know? She shook her head and flinched when an alarm went off "I… I should find the Doctor. If I know him – and I think I do at least a little – he's getting himself into trouble right about now."

'_Of course, little Warrior,_' Boe nodded, looking after her as she walked off.

* * *

"Matron," Hame breathed a sigh of relief "It's that man… And one of the girls."

Matron Casp nodded "We heard the alarm. Now get back to work. Tend to your patients."

Tyra ducked around the corner when Novice Hame walked in her direction and followed the cat-nun-nurses at a safe distance. Of course, this had something to do with the Doctor. His mere presence usually got them into trouble though she had no idea how he managed it.

"_Just let Rose go, Cassandra,_" the Doctor's muffled voice reached Tyra's ears moments before the scene came into view.

"I will," Rose – or Cassandra shrugged "As soon as I've found someone younger and less common, then I'll junk her with the waste. Maybe I'll try on that other kid of yours. Now hushaby. It's showtime."

Sister Jatt cleared her throat with a fake pleasant smile "Anything we can do to help?"

"Straight to the point, Whiskers," Cassandra smirked "I want money."

Casp scoffed "The Sisterhood is a charity. We don't give money. We only accept."

Cassandra rolled her eyes "The Humans across the water pay you a fortune and that's exactly what I need. A one-off payment, that's all I want. Oh, and perhaps a yacht. In return for which, I shall tell the city nothing of your institutional murder. Is that a deal?"

"I'm afraid not," Casp shot back with a disapproving shake of her head.

"I'd really advise you to think about this," Cassandra threatened.

Casp sent her a sharp smile "Oh, there's no need. I have to decline."

Cassandra stepped forward "I'll tell them and you've no way of stopping me. You're not exactly Nuns with Guns. You're not even armed."

"Who needs arms when we have claws?" Matron Casp asked, unsheathing her claws.

In a moment, Tyra was moving and wrapped her arm around Sister Jatt's neck "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"Oh, thank God," Cassandra gasped with more relief than she felt necessary. But maybe the other girl didn't know "They just attacked me, Tyra."

Tyra rolled her eyes and let go of Sister Jatt, stepping away from the cat's claws "Don't even try, Cassandra. Where's the Doctor?"

Cassandra ignored her and looked at the cats nervously "Well, nice try. Chip? Plan B." Chip pulled a lever, causing all the doors on that level to open.

The Doctor stumbled out of one of the cells with a lot of dazed, diseased people doing the same "What have you done?" he demanded.

"Gave the system a shot of adrenaline, just to wake them up," Cassandra smirked as the cat-nun-nurses were slowly being surrounded by the patients "See you."

Tyra sped over to the Doctor's side, looking at him worriedly "Are you alright? How did she get you in there?"

"That doesn't matter right now," the Doctor avoided, not wanting to admit that he had been defeated by some perfume. He shot a look at the cat-nun-nurses "Don't touch them. Whatever you do, don't touch." He took Tyra's hand, pulling her after Cassandra and Chip down the stairs.

Cassandra stopped on a catwalk across from where the cat-nun-nurses and the patients were "Oh, my God," she breathed when Jatt screamed, falling to her death.

"What the hell have you done?" the Doctor demanded as patients started coming out of the cells on all levels of Intensive Care.

"It wasn't me," Cassandra protested weakly.

The Doctor gritted his teeth "One touch and you get every disease in the world and I want that body safe, Cassandra. We've got to go down."

"But there's thousands of them," Cassandra argued.

The Doctor shoved her to the staircase "Run! Down! Down! Go down!"

'_This building is under quarantine. Repeat, this building is under quarantine. No one may leave the premises. Repeat, no one may leave the premises._'

"Keep going," the Doctor called "Go down." Cassandra ran to the elevator as the Doctor sighed "No, the lifts have closed down. That's the quarantine. Nothing is moving."

Cassandra's eyes darted from one direction to the other "This way." The Doctor and Tyra quickly ran after her. When Chip got cut off by more people approaching, Cassandra rolled her eyes and snapped at him "Leave him. He's just a close thing. He's only a half-life. Come on."

"Mistress," Chip called out.

"I'm sorry," the Doctor whispered apologetically "I can't let her escape."

Tyra looked at him "I can…"

"We don't know what's going to happen if they touch you, Ty," the Doctor snapped "We can't risk it. Come on."

Cassandra ran to the back door but reared back when there were patients there already "We're trapped," she called back "What am I going to do?"

"Well, for starters, you're going to leave that body," the Doctor pointed out, glaring at her "That psychograft is banned on every civilised planet. You're compressing Rose to death."

"But I've got nowhere to go," Cassandra complained "My original skin's dead."

"Not my problem," the Doctor shook his head "You can float as atoms in the air. Now, get out. Give her back to me."

Cassandra smirked "You asked for it." She took a deep breath and blew some energy at Tyra first. When nothing happened once she got close, she changed course and hit the Doctor full on.

"Blimey," Rose groaned, steadying herself on the wall "My head… Where did she go?"

Tyra pointed to the Doctor who had let go of her as soon as Cassandra had gotten closer "She's in him."

"Oh, my," Cassandra laughed "This is different… Goodness me, I'm a man. Yum. So many parts and hardly used. Oh, oh, two hearts." She started twisting and twitching which looked incredibly weird to the two girls "Oh, baby, I'm beating out a samba."

Rose lunged forward "Get out of him."

"Ooh, he's slim," Cassandra teased, winking at Rose "And a little bit foxy. You've thought so too. I've been inside your head. You've been looking. You like it."

Rose looked at Tyra uncomfortably. She had hoped that no one would find out about her crush on the Doctor. Tyra scoffed. It had been more than obvious that Rose was into the Doctor and honestly, she couldn't care less. Tyra knew that the Doctor was good-looking and sure, she liked him but there was a difference between her and Rose. Tyra might flirt but she wouldn't act on it. Not unless things changed.

At that moment, diseased people burst through the door "What do we do?" Cassandra flitted around panicked "What would he do? The Doctor, what the hell would he do?"

"Ladder," Tyra pointed out, jumping onto the fifth sprung gracefully with the other two following "We should try to get up. Hurry."

"Out of the way, blonde," Cassandra snapped, pushing Rose to the side.

Tyra glanced down, making sure that Rose was still on the ladder. One of the women reached out her arms with tears in her eyes as she looked at them "Please, help us. Help."

"We'll try our best," Tyra whispered.

"If you get out of the Doctor's body, he can think of something," Rose called up to Cassandra.

Cassandra rolled her eyes "Yap, yap, yap. God, it was tedious inside your head. Hormone city."

"We're going to die if…" Rose broke off, shaking her leg "Get off."

Matron Casp was clutching her ankle tightly "All our work," the cat-nun-nurse hissed "All that healing. The good name of the Sisterhood. You have destroyed everything."

Cassandra snorted "Go and play with a ball of string."

"Everywhere disease. This is the Human world. Sickness." A diseased arm reached up and grasped Casp's ankle. She screamed, falling from the ladder.

"Move," Rose shouted, quickly climbing after us.

'_Maximum quarantine. Divert all shuttles,_' the tannoy informed.

The doors of the elevator were right in front of Tyra's face now "Now what do we do?" Cassandra demanded. Tyra reached down to dig through the Doctor's inside pockets "What the hell are you doing?"

Tyra showed her the sonic, she had just pulled out and flicked through the settings "I don't know which setting," she called down to Rose.

"Cassandra, go back into me," Rose pleaded urgently "The Doctor can open it. Do it."

"Hold tight," Cassandra sighed, transferring back into Rose "Oh, chavtastic again. Open it."

The Doctor shook his head "Not till you get out of her."

"Doctor, which setting do I need?" Tyra questioned, looking down at him.

Cassandra nodded to her "We need the Doctor."

"I order you to leave her," he commanded.

Tyra rolled her eyes in exasperation "Doctor, I have an idea. I can hold out longer than Rose but there's something you have to make sure of. She can't possess me as long as I'm wearing my daylight ring. It's magic… If I take it off, you'll have to make sure that she's not going to go running into the sun. I'm not sure if it would force her out if she puts it back on…"

"Absolutely not," the Doctor shook his head.

"It's the only chance," Tyra tried "You know that she's not going to give up." She slipped off the ring and made sure to put it into her pocket so that it wouldn't fall out.

The Doctor stared at Tyra, trying to find out whether she was sure about this. He didn't like it but Tyra was right. She would hold out longer than Rose "Fine. But as soon as we can, we're going to get you your own body."

Cassandra didn't answer, instead, she flew out of Rose and up to Tyra "Woah," she gasped "That's a rush. And so different."

The Doctor glared at her before climbing up the ladder to Tyra's height. He plucked the sonic from Cassandra's hands and quickly opened the elevator doors "Nice to have you back," he nodded to Rose after helping her in.

Cassandra breathed in and stiffened "What is that smell?" she asked "What… Why do I… What's going on?"

"Well, it isn't easy to possess a vampire," the Doctor shot back through gritted teeth "What you smell is probably blood. Try not to go on a rampage, would you?"

"No, no," Cassandra shook her head, trying to think of a way to describe what she was feeling "It's just so tempting. How can she stand it?"

The Doctor sighed "Tyra is… stronger than people would give her credit for when they see her."

"She's so alone," Cassandra muttered, piecing together what little memories she had access to "The things she has seen…" She gasped, her hand flying to her chest when she got to a memory of a dagger being shoved into her heart "She wanted to die so badly…"

The Doctor's shoulders slumped. He knew that Tyra felt like this. Well, not exactly like this but he had his suspicions and it hurt. She could be nice if she wanted to and he had started to like her more than he probably should. It hurt him that she was thinking about death, no matter how probable it was. He held out his hand for Cassandra. She had fallen when the sensation of the dagger had washed over her "You should be fine as long as you stay inside. The ring that Tyra just took off allowed her to walk around in the sun. And since the building is shielded… It should be alright."

* * *

As soon as the three – or was it four? – entered Ward 26, Frau Clovis lunged at them with a metal stand. The Doctor immediately held up his hands "We're safe! We're safe! We're safe! We're clean! We're clean. Look, look."

"Show me your skin," the woman demanded.

He showed her his hands, Cassandra and Rose following suit "Look, clean. Look, if we'd been touched, we'd be dead. So how's it going up here? What's the status?"

Clovis shook her head "There's nothing but silence from the other wards. I think we're the only ones left. And I've been trying to override the quarantine. If I can trip a signal over to New New York, they can send a private executive squad."

"You can't do that," the Doctor exclaimed "If they forced entry, they'd break the quarantine."

Clovis sniffed "I am not dying in here."

"We can't let a single particle of disease get out. There are ten million people in that city," the Doctor pointed out harshly "They'd all be at risk. Now, turn that off."

"Not if it gets me out," Clovis huffed.

"Alright, fine," the Doctor rolled his eyes "So I have to stop you lot as well. Suits me. Rose, Novice Hame, everyone! Excuse me, your Grace. Get me intravenous solutions for every single disease. Move it!" He grabbed a silk rope, tying it across his chest before turning to Cassandra "How's that? Will that do?"

"I don't know," Cassandra shrugged "Will it do for what?"

"Rose, you're staying here," the Doctor called over his shoulder, running towards the elevator "Cassandra… With me."

Rose looked annoyed but nodded when she saw that she didn't have a choice "Be careful," she shouted.

The Doctor opened the elevator doors and looked down as Cassandra crossed her arms "The lifts aren't working."

"Not moving," the Doctor corrected, grabbing a piece of some medical equipment "Different thing. Here we go." He put the sonic between his teeth and ran towards the open doors.

"But you're not going to…" Cassandra watched with wide eyes as the Doctor jumped and grabbed the elevator cable "What do you think you're doing?"

The Doctor attached the piece of equipment to the cable "I'm going down. Come on!"

Cassandra shook her head, taking a step back "Not in a million years."

"I need another pair of hands and since you're sorta in Tyra right now… I'm not going to leave you in a room with Humans alone without anything to stop you from draining them dry," the Doctor pointed out "If you're so desperate to stay alive, why don't you live a little?"

"Seal the door!" Clovis shouted, trapping Cassandra with the approaching patients "No," she breathed before jumping onto the Doctor's back "You're completely mad. I can see why they like you."

The Doctor ignored her "Going down." The improvised wheel he had attached to the cable took them down the shaft. Just before the floor came into view, the Doctor put on the brake and they came to a slow stop on top of the elevator.

"Well," Cassandra straightened her clothes "That's one way to lose weight. Not that she needs it anyway."

The Doctor turned to look at her "Now, listen. When I say so, take hold of that lever."

He opened the top of the lift as Cassandra tugged at his shoulder "There's still a quarantine down there, we can't…"

"Hold that lever," the Doctor cut her off "I'm cooking up a cocktail. I know a bit of medicine myself." He started pouring the contents of the drip bags into the elevator's disinfectant tank "Now, that lever's going to resist. But keep it in position. It shouldn't be too hard… Just try not to break it."

Cassandra tilted her head "What about you?"

"I've got an appointment," the Doctor grinned, dropping down into the elevator cabin "The Doctor is in." He opened the doors with his sonic and called "I'm in here. Come on!"

"Don't tell them," Cassandra shouted over her shoulder.

The Doctor rolled his eyes and looked to the doors when the diseased people came towards him "Pull that lever." The patients in the reception started to shuffle towards the lift and into the elevator "Come and get me. Come on! I'm in here. Come on."

"_Commence stage one disinfection,_" the tannoy announced.

"Hurry up," the Doctor urged "Come on!" He spat out some of the mixture as it poured down on him "Come on, come on." He looked up to the hole "All they want to do is pass it on. Pass it on!"

Cassandra held onto the lever, glancing over the edge "Pass on what?"

"Pass it on," the Doctor called again as the disinfected and wet Humans touched the still diseased people. There were lots of hisses and steam coming off their skin which slowly cleared from the symptoms.

When it was done, the Doctor helped Cassandra down into the elevator "What did they pass on? Did you kill them? All of them?"

"No," the Doctor shook his head "That's your way of doing things. I'm the Doctor and I cured them." He stepped out of the elevator, smiling when one of the women went in for a hug "That's right. Hey, there we go, sweetheart. Go to him. Go on, that's it. That's it. It's a new sub-species, Cassandra. A brand new form of life. New Humans! Look at them. Look! Grown by cats, kept in the dark, fed by tubes but completely – completely alive. You can't deny them because you helped create them. The human race just keeps on going, keep on changing. Life will out! Ha!"

* * *

"_This is the NNYPD. Please step away from the shuttles,_" someone announced over the loudspeaker.

The tannoy sounded just after that "_All staff will present themselves to the officers for immediate arrest. I repeat, immediate arrest. All new life forms will be catalogued and taken into care. All visitors to the hospital will be required to make a statement to the NNYPD._"

"The Face of Boe," the Doctor gasped, racing off with Cassandra following. He looked at the tank with an expression close to exasperation "You were supposed to be dying."

'_There are better things to do today,_' Boe teased '_Dying can wait._'

Cassandra groaned "Oh, I hate telepathy. Just what I need, a head full of big face."

"Shh," the Doctor shushed her with a small glare.

'_I have grown tired with this universe, Doctor, but you have taught me to look at it anew._'

The Doctor crouched down "There are legends, you know, saying that you're millions of years old."

'_There are?_' A wicked smirk flashed through their minds '_That would be impossible._'

"Wouldn't it just," the Doctor agreed "I got the impression there was something you wanted to tell me."

Boe nodded '_A great secret._'

The Doctor shifted giddily "So legend says."

'_It can wait._'

"Oh, does it have to?" the Doctor pouted.

'_We shall meet again, Doctor, for the third time, for the last time. And the truth shall be told. Until that day…_' With that said, Boe beamed away.

The Doctor gaped at the space the tank had been in a minute ago "That is enigmatic. That – that is… That is textbook enigmatic." He shook his head and whirled around "And now for you."

"But everything is happy," Cassandra pointed out "Everything's fine… Can't you just leave me to find my own body?"

"You've lived long enough," the Doctor decided "Leave that body and end it, Cassandra."

Cassandra's head dropped "I don't want to die."

"Mistress," Chip cried out in relief, hurrying up to them. He looked at an uncomfortable Rose at first before turning to Cassandra "I kept myself safe for you, Mistress."

"A body," Cassandra realised "And not just that, a volunteer."

The Doctor pointed at her "Don't you dare. He's got a life of his own."

"But I worship the mistress," Chip exclaimed "I welcome her."

Tyra swayed and almost collapsed when Cassandra left her. The Doctor wrapped his hands around Tyra's waist, steadying her "Oh… You alright? Whoa. Okay?"

"I'm fine," Tyra told him quietly, moving away from him. She dug around in the pocket of her jeans and slipped on her daylight ring again. As soon as it was in place, she relaxed a little.

Cassandra stepped between them before the Doctor could express his worry "Oh, sweet Lord. I'm a walking doodle."

"You can't stay in there. I'm sorry, Cassandra but that's not fair. I can take you to the city," the Doctor offered "They can build you a skin tank and you can stand trial for what you've done."

Cassandra considered it for a moment "Well, that would be rather dramatic. Possibly my finest hour and certainly my finest hat but I'm afraid we don't have time. Poor little Chip is only a half-life and he's been through so much. His heart is racing so… He's failing. I don't think he's going to last…" She fell to her knees in pain.

"Are you alright?" the Doctor questioned.

Cassandra shook her head with a smile "I'm fine. I'm dying but that's fine."

"I can take you to the city."

"No, you won't," Cassandra whispered "Everything's new on this planet. There's no place for Chip and me anymore. You're right, Doctor. It's time to die and that's good."

"Come on," the Doctor waved "There's one last thing I can do."

Tyra reached out to steady Cassandra on the walk back to the Tardis, following behind the Doctor and Rose "How do you deal with all this?" Cassandra murmured, looking over at Tyra questioningly.

"With what?" Tyra asked, pretending not to know what she was talking about.

"Everything. The heightened senses, the memories… Just everything," Cassandra gestured "I was in your body for an hour at most and it was almost too much for me."

Tyra raised her shoulder, looking off into the distance "It's just something I had to get used to. I'm fine."

She stumbled over her own feet "Where do you think the Doctor is taking me?"

"I honestly don't know," Tyra shook her head "But he's a good man, you'll see."

* * *

After the Doctor had dropped Cassandra off in her personal past, both he and Rose returned to the Tardis to find the console room empty "Rose? Remember what I told you yesterday?"

"What?" Rose blinked, turning to face him.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow at her "Have you apologized to Tyra yet?"

"Er… No, not yet," she shrugged.

"How about you do it now then?" the Doctor crossed his arms.

Rose shook her head "Tyra isn't here right now and I'm tired from having Cassandra stuck in my body for a while."

The Doctor sighed "Fine. I'm going to let it go one more time… But you are going to apologize to her, Rose."

"Yes, yes," Rose waved off, stepping closer to the Doctor "So… Wanna watch a movie with me?"

"Sorry, Rose. I still have some things to fix," the Doctor blocked "And I want to go check up on Tyra." He wasn't sure why it was making him uncomfortable… Maybe he just didn't feel anything for Rose – not in that way at least. The kiss he got from Cassandra weirded him out more than he would have thought. If there was anyone he liked more than he should, it was Tyra. He shook his head and squished the feelings.

He wandered through the halls until he reached Tyra's door "Ty?" He knocked gently, listening for a sound "Can I come in?"

Tyra leaned her head back against the door from where she was sitting on the ground. She had barely managed to make her way into the door before her legs had given out on her "I'm fine, Doctor," she told him, raising her voice a little.

"I just want to talk to you," he shot back.

"I don't want to talk," Tyra snapped, closing her eyes "Can you please leave me alone?"

The Doctor shot the door a worried look. Tyra hadn't refused to talk to him – refused to let him in since she started travelling with him and if he was honest with himself, he was scared what that meant. He shook his head. He would just have to wait and see how things turned out. For now, he would give Tyra the time she needed. Having Cassandra in her head, spilling her secrets couldn't have been pleasant.


	4. Tooth and Claw

**I am really sorry this took so long. I was trying to prewrite and instead came up with like... five more ideas becaise I got into Yu-Gi-Oh and now I have ideas for a Teen Wolf Crossover, a TVD Crossover and a Harry Potter Crossover. There are more ideas but those are the main ones at the moment.**

**Oh well... More changed thingies in this chapter. Hope you like them.**

**Enjoy and Merry fucking Christmas,**

**Nick**

A while earlier, Rose had vanished into her room to change into something different. Tyra had looked through the wardrobe a while back and stole the outfit. She had never really gotten the chance to wear it before, so she thought she might as well test it out. Tyra was wearing a black suit with a white, fitting blouse and a narrow black tie that she had loosely tied. Since she wasn't sure what the temperatures would be like, she grabbed a black trench coat to put on over the suit jacket.

"What do you think of this?" Rose asked, twirling around in a denim mini-dungaree "Will it do?"

The Doctor glanced at her for a moment "In the late 1970s? You'd be better off in a bin bag. Hold on…" He grabbed a CD from underneath the console and put it into a CD player that was conveniently built into the Tardis' console "Listen to this. Ian Dury and the Blockheads. Number One in 1979."

Tyra raised her eyebrows and winced at the loud music. She couldn't help but snort when Rose accused the Doctor of being a punk though. She wasn't wrong.

The Doctor started bobbing his head, walking around the console happily "It's good to be a lunatic."

"Rose is right," Tyra shook her head quietly, getting up from the jump seat to join the other two by the console. She was a bit further away from the Doctor than Rose but both the Doctor and Tyra pretended not to notice "You definitely are a punk."

"Would you like to see him?" the Doctor asked them.

Rose blinked "How do you mean? In concert?"

"What else is the Tardis for?" he questioned, spreading out his arms in a grand gesture "I can take you to the Battle of Trafalgar, the first anti-gravity Olympics, Caesar crossing the Rubicon or… Ian Dury at the Top Rank, Sheffield, England, Earth, 21st November 1979. What do you think?"

"Sheffield it is," Rose nodded.

The Doctor turned to Tyra and titled his head. She shrugged "I don't care. I never really liked Ian Dury but if you want to see him… We can go."

"You didn't like…" the Doctor trailed off and shook his head violently "Never mind. Hold on tight." He dug out his trusted hammer.

Tyra grimaced. She had hoped he would have given up on hitting the Tardis after his regeneration but apparently she was wrong.

Rose and Tyra both held on for dear life as the Tardis twisted around violently "Stop," Rose cried out when her fingers started to go numb from clutching at the console. As soon as that word left her mouth, they stopped and were thrown to the ground harshly. The landing could have probably been better but at least it had stopped.

"1979," the Doctor cheered "Hell of a year. China invades Vietnam. The Muppet Movie. Love that film." He grabbed his coat, shrugging it on while making his way towards the door "Margaret Thatcher. Urgh. Skylab falls to Earth with a little help from me. Nearly took off my thumb. I need my thumb. I'm very attached to…" Riffles were cocked and he trailed off "My thumb."

Tyra looked at the Redcoats that surrounded them and hit the Doctor's shoulder "1800s… Are you trying to get us killed?"

The man on the horse was the one who spoke up "You will explain your presence and the nakedness of this girl." For the last words, he nodded at Rose. Tyra's lips twitched at the undertone of the man's voice. She preferred to be frowned upon for wearing men's clothing rather than to be seen as naked. Not that she hadn't done that before… But ever since corsets were invented, she preferred wearing pants instead of the dresses that would try to suffocate the person wearing it with every move.

"Are we in Scotland?" the Doctor questioned with the most natural-sounding Scottish accent he could manage.

"How can you be ignorant of that?"

The Doctor winced "Oh, I'm – I'm dazed and confused." He gestured to Tyra "We've been chasing this – this wee naked child over hill and over dale. Isn't that right, ya timorous beastie?"

Rose looked from the soldier to the Doctor and glared at the later "Och, aye," she huffed "I've been oot and aboot."

Tyra leaned forward to stare at her from the Doctor's right "Are you actually serious right now?"

"Hoots mon," Rose continued jokingly.

"No, really… Don't. Really," the Doctor muttered in embarrassment.

Captain Reynolds had been watching their interaction silently "Will you identify yourself, sir?"

"I'm Doctor James McCrimmon from the township of Balamory," the Doctor said, gesturing to his pocket "I have my credentials if I may." After he got a nod, he fished the psychic paper out and flashed it at all the soldiers surrounding them "As you can see, a Doctorate from the University of Edinburgh. I trained under Doctor Bell himself."

A familiar upper-class English accent that made a smile break out over Tyra's face carried towards them from a nearby carriage "Let them approach."

"I don't think that's wise, ma'am," Reynolds replied.

"Let them approach," the voice repeated firmly.

The Captain sighed in defeat "You will approach the carriage and show all due deference." As soon as they got closer, a footman opened the door to reveal Queen Victoria herself.

"Rose, Tyra, might I introduce her Majesty, Queen Victoria. Empress of India and Defender of the Faith," the Doctor smiled softly.

Rose curtsied clumsily "Rose Tyler, ma'am. And my apologies for being so naked."

"I've had five daughters," the Queen waved off "It's nothing new to me. Although it is good to see a familiar face once more." The Doctor and Rose frowned in confusion when Queen Victoria turned to look at Tyra "Lady Tyra. I haven't seen you in a while. How have you fared?"

"Your Majesty." Tyra curtsied gracefully, the years of manners still deeply ingrained in her mind. Elijah had taken it upon himself to teach his siblings about manners and whenever one of them acted out. Well, it wasn't pleasant. He was very strict after they had lied their way into being nobility "I have been well, thank you."

The Doctor looked at Tyra with a raised eyebrow "You know Queen Victoria personally?" he whispered "Why did you never tell me?"

Tyra shrugged "It never came up. Although, I thought you knew that my siblings and I were seen as nobility by many."

"Still dressing like a man, I see," the Queen pointed out, amusement shining in her eyes.

"As if you ever expected that aspect to change, ma'am," Tyra shot back with a small grin. She had really liked the older woman. For royalty, she had been extremely nice and was one of the few who had treated Tyra as an adult and stood by her even after finding out what she was. She had been in England with Kol when she came across a friend of Prince Edward about to kill the boy. It was betrayal of the worst kind "How is Edward doing, your Majesty?"

"My son is doing well. His wife bore him five children. I believe that he looks forward to seeing you once more, Lady Mikaelson." With that Queen Victoria turned back to the Doctor "But you, Doctor. Show me these credentials." He handed over the psychic paper "Why didn't you say so immediately? It states clearly here that you have been appointed by the Lord Provost as my Protector," she lied.

"Does it?" the Doctor blinked in surprise before catching himself "Yes, it does. Good. Good. Then let me ask – Why is your Majesty travelling by road when there's a train all the way to Aberdeen?"

The Queen looked unimpressed at the man in front of her "A tree on the line."

"An accident?"

"I am the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Everything around me tends to be planned," Queen Victoria replied, leaning back in her seat.

Tyra hummed "Another assassination attempt, ma'am? What does that make now? Number three? Four?"

"Six," the Doctor corrected quietly.

"What, seriously?" Rose gaped "There's people out to kill you?"

Queen Victoria regarded the blonde girl in distaste, her tone equally as sharp as her eyes "I'm quite used to staring down the barrel of a gun."

It was then that Reynolds spoke up from behind "Sir Robert MacLeish lives but ten miles hence. We've sent word ahead. He'll shelter us for tonight then we can reach Balmoral tomorrow."

"The Doctor and his timorous beastie will come with us," Queen Victoria decided, sending Tyra another small smile "Would you like to join me, Lady Mikaelson?"

"Ma'am," Reynolds cut in.

She sent him a sharp look "Captain Reynolds, Lady Mikaelson is a dear friend to my family. I trust her unconditionally."

"Are you going to be fine?" Tyra asked the Doctor, tilting her head up.

He raised an eyebrow "You will have to tell me the story behind this sometime. And you know that you can't avoid talking to me forever." He stared at her sternly before smiling "Go ahead. Rose and I will be fine."

"Thank you," she murmured, climbing into the carriage to sit across from the Queen. The footman closed the door again and soon they were moving again.

Queen Victoria looked at the girl across from her with a hint of worry. She looked tired and similar to the way she had looked just before she had left to go and join her family "It had been a while since we last spoke, dear."

"Indeed," Tyra sighed "I apologize for not contacting you, your Majesty. It had been eventful years since I rejoined my siblings in New Orleans."

"Nonsense," she waved her hand "Although it is a pleasant surprise to see you again, Tyra."

Tyra inclined her head "Thank you, ma'am. I must admit that I have wondered what became of your son. He seemed rather attached to me but from what I hear he seems to be doing well for himself. I am glad."

Queen Victoria chuckled "I believe he often spoke of marrying you when he was but a boy. "

"Oh God," Tyra groaned, hiding her face in her hands "He told you too, then?"

"He did," Queen Victoria agreed "Might I ask… How come you are in the company of such – strange individuals?"

"Strange individuals, ma'am?" Tyra quirked an eyebrow at her words "I do believe the Doctor is rather strange if you give him the chance to start talking. We have been travelling together for a short amount of time already."

The Queen hummed "And the naked child?"

"You will have to apologize Rose, your Majesty," Tyra told her, not even trying to hide her displeasure for the other girl. Rose deserved worse than a monarch disliking her. Tyra shook her head and forced the thoughts out of her mind. Not yet "Her upbringing differed from ours. I believe that she has not had the chance to learn how to be respectful towards royalty or nobility."

"Very well," she nodded "How does travelling become you, my dear?"

Tyra let a happy smile "I love it," she sighed "There have been situations that were difficult but I enjoy learning new things about the world we live in."

"You certainly seem happier when talking about your travels," Queen Victoria noted "And yet I can tell that something is bothering you. The last time I saw you, you acted similarly… caged in a way."

"It is nothing," Tyra shook her head, tugging at her hair "The Doctor and Rose found out about something that I was not ready to share in the way it was shared." She paused for a moment "And the last time we saw each other, I had my family to worry about. My brothers have… different ideas of what is acceptable and what is not. I believe it is these differences that have separated us recently."

Queen Victoria leaned forward a little "Do not let your differences stop you from being with your family. Believe me when I say that it can be over before it is time."

"You speak of Prince Albert," Tyra murmured "I know that you probably have heard it more than you wish but… I am sorry. He was a good man and a good father to your children. I wish I could have seen him once more."

"Thank you," the Queen smiled sadly "It means a lot coming from someone who knew him so well. In the four years you have stayed, Albert and myself… We enjoyed your company and we are thankful for what you did to help us."

Tyra blinked back the tears "This is turning out to be more emotional than I had planned," she muttered, rubbing at her eyes in embarrassment.

Queen Victoria's lips quirked into a grin "You have not changed since I saw you last," she told her.

"Suddenly, I am unsure whether that is a good or a bad thing," Tyra snorted.

The two fell silent for the rest of the carriage ride, Tyra leaning against the wall, half drifting with Queen Victoria keeping a watchful eye on her. The young girl was more important to the royal family than even she knew. They hadn't been lying when they asked her to stay and offered to adopt her into the family. After what Tyra did for their family, it was a wonder Edward had even let her go. The Queen had always loved watching Tyra around her children. She had been a natural – or maybe not a natural but she had neither indulged them when they threw tantrums nor had she been overly strict. She had been a friend to them, a confidant.

* * *

Tyra stepped out of the carriage after the footman helped the Queen out and stretched lightly. She had almost forgotten how uncomfortable carriages had been for prolonged amounts of time.

"Your Majesty," Sir Robert bowed to Queen Victoria, walking out of the house.

"Sir Robert," the Queen greeted "My apologies for the emergency. And how is Lady Isobel?"

Tyra joined the Doctor and Rose by the side of the events and narrowed her eyes when the man started stuttering, his heartbeat all over the place "She's indisposed, I'm afraid. She's gone to Edinburgh for the season. And she's taken the cook with her. The kitchens are barely stocked. I wouldn't blame your Majesty if you wanted to ride on."

"That suspiciously sounds like an excuse," a voice chimed in from the doorway of Torchwood House.

Tyra stiffened, staring at the doorway in slight hesitation "This day just keeps getting better and better." She punched the Doctor's arm, harder than the last time but still not hard enough to really hurt "I hate you so much right now."

"Who is he?" Rose whispered, looking over at Tyra's older brother with appreciation.

The Doctor tilted his head "That's…"

"Yes," Tyra nodded, cutting him off "It is."

Rose looked from the Doctor to Tyra and back to the smirking blond man. What were they keeping from her? She hated that the two were close enough to have secrets between them "No, seriously. Who is he?"

"Hello, Tyra," Niklaus greeted with a smirk, strolling past the group of soldiers after giving a short bow tot he Queen. He grabbed his sister's arm, pulling her away from the people around them "What are you doing here, sister? Last time I checked you were with Kol all the time. Is he here as well?"

Tyra glared at him "I have business to take care of here. And no, I'm alone."

"You didn't mention is when I told you that I was coming to England," Klaus pointed out, looking over her shoulder at the two people his sister had arrived with "Who are they?"

"Is it your business?" Tyra snapped "No, I don't think so. Drop it, Nik. I'm not going to tell you anything." She looked around and raised an eyebrow "What are you doing here? I doubt you have business with Sir Robert."

Klaus raised his shoulder in a half-shrug "None of your business, sister."

They looked over at the Queen when the woman raised her voice a little "It's my first visit to this house. My late husband spoke of it often. The Torchwood Estate. Now, shall we go inside? And please. Excuse the naked girl."

"Sorry," Rose grimaced in embarrassment.

"She's a feral child," the Doctor cut in. Tyra coughed into her hand, turning her back on the majority of the crowd "I bought her for six pence in old London Town. It was her or the Elephant Man, so…"

Rose rolled her eyes "Thinks he's funny but I'm so not amused. What do you think, Ma'am?"

"It hardly matters," Queen Victoria dismissed, her annoyance at the blonde obvious to Tyra and the people who knew her "Shall we proceed?"

After she turned to walk inside the house, Rose leaned up to whisper into the Doctor's ear "So close."

"What the hell do you think you're doing," Tyra hissed, crossing her arms "Queen Victoria is not a person to mess with for your amusement. You better stop whatever it is you're trying to do."

"Relax," Rose scoffed "I'm just trying to get her to say 'We are not amused'."

Tyra glared at her "Yeah? I'm serious, Rose. I know her well enough to know that she is already annoyed with you. Don't make it worse."

"Calm down," the Doctor soothed, wondering what he did to deserve being in this situation "Both of you. It's fine, Ty."

Tyra huffed "Fine. I warned you. This has nothing to do with me." She skirted past the guard and the servants, practically storming into the house. She really wasn't in the mood for their games – or any games at the moment. This would end badly, she could already tell.

"Who are they, Tyra?" Niklaus asked, easily keeping up with his silently fuming sister.

"The man is the Doctor and the blonde is Rose," Tyra shrugged "There. Introductions done. Are you happy now?"

"Hardly," Klaus gave back "When did you meet them?"

Tyra bared her teeth at him, still very much pissed. As soon as she had seen him, something had clicked in her mind. Something she had forgotten until now. The year 1879 had rung a bell before but now that she had seen Klaus, it all made sense. Back the first time around, she had stayed in New Orleans with Kol and Elijah when Klaus left. After he came back he had immediately daggered Tyra and until now she had no idea why. She always thought that he had just mistaken her for someone but then, after she had gotten undaggered, she didn't trust his word anymore. She had trusted him for centuries and after that last time, Tyra just couldn't anymore "None of your business, Niklaus. I may be your sister but you don't dictate my life. Not anymore."

"No?" He narrowed his eyes at her, his hand catching Tyra's shoulder in a harsh grip. Klaus pulled her into the shadows and shoved her against the wall "I believe it is me who holds the thing that keeps you in line."

"Ty?" the Doctor called out quietly, his eyes on the hand that was wrapped around Tyra's throat. He was about ready to interfere. The last time they had seen Klaus in 1941, he hadn't been this… this angry "Is everything alright?"

Tyra nodded, prying her brother's fingers from her throat. She could have pushed him off but she didn't want to show her advantage yet. There was bound to be a time she would need said advantage "It's fine, Doctor. My brother is just being himself. Nothing new there." She shot a glare at Klaus and pushed past him.

On the other side of the room, the Queen started marvelling at the massive bronze telescope in the middle of the room "This, I take it, is the famous Endeavour."

Sir Robert nodded, glancing at Tyra and Klaus curiously. He might have just met the man but he could tell that he was dangerous "All my father's work. Build by hand in his final years. Became something of an obsession. He spent his money on this rather than caring for the house or himself."

"I wish I'd met him," the Doctor breathed in awe "I like him. That thing's beautiful. Can I?"

"Help yourself," Sir Robert gestured.

The Doctor studied the telescope curiously "What did he model it on?"

"I know nothing about it," Sir Robert shook his head, mournfully "To be honest, most of us thought him a little, shall we say… eccentric. I wish now I'd spent more time with him and listened to his stories."

Tyra joined the Doctor by the telescope as he looked through it with a frown "It's a bit rubbish. How many prisms has it got? Way too many. The magnification's gone right over the top. That's stupid kind of…" He broke off and leaned to Tyra "Am I being rude again?"

"Yes. You're being very rude," Tyra nodded and patted his shoulder with a small grin.

"But it's pretty. It's very… pretty," he winced. He really had to control his mouth. Occasionally, that was.

Tyra rubbed at her templed "That didn't necessarily help, Doc," she muttered.

The Queen threw the Doctor a look that said so much and yet so little. The more time she spent around the man and his… timorous beastie, she wondered why Tyra was with them. They seemed so uncouth. Nothing like the girl "And the imagination of it should be applauded."

"Hm," Rose hummed, looking at Queen Victoria slyly "Thought you might disapprove, your Majesty. Stargazing. Isn't that a bit fanciful? You could easily not be amused or something? No?"

Tyra raised her hand to her face. She was ready to give up on both of them. Really, couldn't they read the mood the Queen was already in? Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Klaus blinking at Rose incredulously.

"This device surveys the infinite work of God," the Queen pointed out "What could be finer? Sir Robert's father was an example to us all. A polymath, steeped in astronomy and sciences, yet equally well versed in folklore and fairytales."

"Stars and magic," the Doctor grinned "I like him more and more."

"Oh, my late husband enjoyed his company," the Queen mentioned with a sad smile.

Tyra closed her eyes, mind going back to Prince Albert and the last time she had seen him. It was without Queen Victoria there since she had been busy, but Tyra had the feeling that she was aware that her husband had offered to adopt Tyra. She had explained a little about her family and Albert was appalled at what her parents had done to them. His rants had been quite amusing.

"Prince Albert was acquainted with many rural superstitions…" She sent a small smile to Tyra, thinking about her revelation and her Albert's reaction to finding out that the world was indeed bigger than they knew "Coming as he did from Saxe-Coburg."

"That's Bavaria," the Doctor breathed into Rose's ear.

"When Albert was told about your local wolf, he was transported," the Queen pointed out, looking at Sir Robert.

The Doctor perked up "So, what's this wolf, then?"

"It's just a story," Sir Robert smiled nervously. For a short moment, he glanced at the bald servant behind him nervously.

Tyra tilted her head, getting slightly nervous "If it's just a story then tell it."

Robert inhaled shakily "It's said that…"

"Excuse me, sir," the servant cut in smoothly "Perhaps her Majesty's party could repair to their rooms. It's almost dark."

"Of course," Sir Robert nodded quickly "Yes, of course."

The Queen smiled at the mention of rest and Tyra couldn't blame her. She would have been inside that carriage for the better part of the day, not to speak of the rest of the journey "And then supper. And… Could we find some clothes for Miss Tyler? I'm tired of nakedness."

"It's not amusing, is it?" Rose questioned pointedly.

"Sir Robert," Queen Victoria continued as if Rose hadn't spoken "Your wife must have left some clothes. See to it. We shall dine at seven and talk some more of this wolf. After all, there is a full moon tonight."

Sir Robert swallowed heavily, dreading the evening. He had hoped to get rid of her Majesty by now but the woman was stubborn. She reminded him of his own wife… "So there is, ma'am," he choked out.

The group parted ways in the corridor. Rose was being led towards the closet that was close to the master bedroom, while the Doctor decided to wander around after making sure that Tyra would be alright with her brother.

Klaus was pulling his sister along and into a room in the guest corridor, telling her that they had to talk "Are you alright?" he questioned gently, sitting down next to her.

Tyra shrugged "I think so. But… Do you really think that there's a werewolf around?"

"I don't know," Klaus shook his head "What is it that you have against werewolves? You never had a disdain for them until… Oh."

Tyra leaned into him when Klaus wrapped an arm around her shoulders. This was the brother she remembered from when they were human. It was when he pretended to be Klaus that Tyra hated. Klaus loved to shove daggers into his siblings and was generally the 'evil' Hybrid, while Nik was the brother the Mikaelsons loved. Tyra sighed. She loved him anyway, whether he was Klaus or Nik but she was always cautious around him. It made their relationship more strained than either of them would like "I just…" she broke off, chewing on her lip nervously.

Klaus sighed, leaning his forehead on Tyra's head "You know that you can tell me anything, right? I might not be Kol but… I don't like seeing you this way."

"I lied to you," Tyra mumbled into his chest "I lied to all of you, Nik."

He frowned "What are you talking about?"

"That night," she breathed, her eyes going glassy "I woke up just after you and Henrik snuck out… I felt like something – something was wrong. Something bad was going to happen."

_Flashback_

_Tyra woke up with a feeling of uneasiness. Like something was wrong. Once she noticed that neither Niklaus nor Henrik were anywhere in sight she shivered. No, they couldn't have gone out, could they? Nik would never allow Henry to actually watch the wolves turn back into men, would he? She remembered her twin saying something about wanting to see them change a while ago but she never thought that anyone would actually allow him to go. When they still hadn't returned a while later, the young girl scrambled out of the caves quietly, grabbing her father's sword on the way out. Oh, Mikael would probably kill her in the morning for taking it but at the moment she didn't care. _

_The cool night air made her shiver violently. Where could they be? She followed the feeling she had, making sure to keep to the shadows and be as quiet as possible "No," she heard a voice shout. Nik… That was Nik's voice. Tyra hurried to where she heard the noises and stopped behind a tree. From there she could see a clearing where her brothers were surrounded by a couple of wolves. Nik had his own sword out, ready to defend them "Leave us alone."_

"_Nik," Henry whispered, his voice shaking in fear "I'm scared."_

"_I'll protect you, Henrik," the older of the two whispered "Just stay close to me." It was then that the wolves lunged at the two of them, causing Tyra to swallow a horrified scream. Nik fought them off as well as he could but there were too many and soon one of the werewolves had pounced on Henrik, sinking its claws into the younger boy's stomach "Henrik." Nik's voice shook and the sword fell out of his nerveless fingers. The girl hiding behind the tree fell to the ground in pain, something inside of her feeling as if it was dying. She recognized it as the part that always told her when her twin was in trouble… The part that had been screaming at her ever since she woke up. Henrik and her always had a closer bond than anyone knew. It went as far as feeling each other's feelings when they were particularly loud but neither of the twins told anyone about it. They kept the secret to themselves for fear of what their father would do… _

_End Flashback_

"Are you saying what I think you are?" Klaus asked, his voice dangerously low.

Tyra sniffled a little "I saw Henrik die. I saw how the wolves ripped into him."

Klaus let out a shaky breath, the topic of Henrik being one of the only things that earned such a reaction from him anymore. That and the threat to any of his siblings "You saw that? You saw how they went after Henrik and how they just ignored me? You should hate me."

"Because you're my brother, Nik," she told him, looking into his eyes "I lost my twin brother that night. I couldn't stand to lose another of my brothers as well, no matter whether we get along presently. Always and Forever, right?"

"Always and Forever," he murmured, pressing a kiss to Tyra's forehead "We should be going. Dinner is going to start soon… Are you sure that you're fine? There's something else going on."

Tyra groaned, letting her head fall against his chest "There is a lot more going on. But I can handle it. It's fine, Nik."

* * *

The Doctor was already in the dining room when Tyra and Klaus entered. He studied Tyra carefully, noting the red-rimmed eyes. She seemed unhurt though, so he guessed that the two had a more or less peaceful talk.

"Your companion begs an apology," the servant from earlier spoke up, inclining his head at the Doctor "Her clothing has somewhat delayed her."

"Oh, that's alright," the Doctor waved off as Tyra took a seat next to him, across from Queen Victoria while Klaus sat down on the other side of the table across from Sir Robert "Save her a wee bit of ham."

"The feral child could probably eat it raw," the Queen joked.

Tyra shook her head "Rose is going to kill you with how you're drawing this out," she breathed barely loud enough for the Doctor to hear.

Captain Reynolds started chuckling, going a little overboard with his enthusiasm "Very wise, ma'am. Very witty."

"Slightly witty, perhaps," Queen Victoria murmured before she collected herself "I know you rarely get the chance to dine with me, Captain, but don't get too excited. I shall contain my wit in case I do you further injury."

Klaus choked on his wine and tried to stifle his coughing, glaring when Tyra snorted at him "Be quiet, you."

"I didn't say anything," she shot back, holding up her hands. Tyra poked the Doctor "Don't you think it's weird that Rose isn't here?"

"She's probably taking longer because she isn't used to the dresses or something. It'll be alright," the Doctor murmured before turning to face Sir Robert "We're all waiting on Sir Robert. Come, sir. You promised us a tale of nightmares."

"Indeed," Queen Victoria nodded empathetically "Since my husband's death, I find myself with more of a taste for supernatural fiction."

The Doctor licked his lips, looking at her Majesty mournfully "You must miss him."

"Very much," Queen Victoria nodded, her mood sombre "Oh, completely." She shook herself, pulling up a well-practised smile "And that's the charm of a ghost story, isn't it? Not the scares and chills, that's just for children but the hope of some contact with the great beyond. We all want some message from that place."

Tyra leaned back in her chair "Oh, I would prefer never to hear from that place," she whispered, shuddering lightly. When she saw Klaus rolling his eyes, she narrowed her eyes "I'll remind you of this when Mother tries to kill us or something." The Other Side tended to disturb Tyra. It was a reason why the Alpha Coven rarely practised Ancestral magic. Both Kol and her had taught them many forms of magic that were more powerful than that particular branch. Even the people who had come to them from one of the other covens that practised Ancestral magic usually preferred their method. It brought them closer to nature.

"Come. Begin your tale, Sir Robert," the Queen urged "There is a chill in the air. The wind is howling through the eaves. Tell us of monsters."

Sir Robert closed his eyes for a moment and set his fork down "The story goes back three hundred years. Every full moon, the howling rings through the valley. The next morning, livestock is found ripped apart and devoured."

"Tales like this juts disguise the work of thieves," the Captain scoffed "Steal a sheep and blame a wolf, simple as that."

"But sometimes a child goes missing," Sir Robert argued "Once in a generation, a boy will vanish from his homestead."

The Doctor leaned forward to look around Tyra to study the man closely "Are there descriptions of the creature?"

"Oh, yes, Doctor. Drawings and woodcarvings," Sir Robert explained "And it's not merely a wolf. It's more than that. This is a man who becomes an animal."

The Doctor raised his eyebrow "A werewolf?"

"My father didn't treat it as a story," Sir Robert admitted "He said it was fact. He even claimed to have communed with the beast, to have learned its purpose. I should have listened. His work was hindered. He made enemies. There's a monastery in the Glen of Saint Catherine. The Brethren opposed my father's investigations."

Their heads snapped around when the servant at the window started chanting "Lupus deus est. Lupus deus est."

"Perhaps they thought his work ungodly," the Queen murmured.

Sir Robert's eyes were trained on the servant as he replied absentmindedly "That's what I thought. But now I wonder. What if they had a different reason for wanting the story kept quiet? What if they turned from God and worshipped the wolf?"

"And what if they were with us right now?" the Doctor continued.

Queen Victoria whirled around when the chanting grew louder "What is the meaning of this?"

"Explain yourself, Sir Robert," Captain Reynolds demanded, sliding in front of the Queen protectively.

Sir Robert dropped his head in shame "I'm sorry, your Majesty, they've got my wife."

"Rose!" the Doctor exclaimed, jumping to his feet "Where is Rose? Where is she? Sir Robert, come on."

Tyra shook her head "Oh, so now he cares…" She turned to run after him before snapping at Klaus "Stay with her Majesty. I'll try to make sure the Doctor and Rose don't get themselves killed." She reached them just in time to see the two men breaking down the cellar door.

There was a scream on the other side and the sound of heavy panting reached her ears "Where the hell have you been?" Rose snapped, glaring at the Doctor.

"Oh, that's beautiful," the Doctor breathed, staring at the occupant of the crate on the other side of the basement.

Rose rolled her eyes at him, shooing all of the people towards the door "Come on, go. Get out."

"Out! Out. Out. Out. Out," the Doctor called when the wolf broke out of the crate. He stopped staring at the beast long enough for Tyra to pull him through the door with her. As soon as he was out, he quickly sonicked the lock, hoping it would keep the wolf long enough for them to disappear.

Tyra stumbled at the loud howl that echoed down the hall "Why does this always happen around you?" she complained.

The Doctor glanced down "Is something wrong?"

"No," she shook her head, extracting her hand from his grip to cross her arms

He sighed at her reaction, determined to get to the bottom of her behaviour. It couldn't have just been because of Cassandra, could it have been? "

One of the men from the cellar who had started handing out guns with distaste "Arms, and you. Ready, everyone?" He turned to Lady Isobel "Take the girls. Get them out through the kitchen."

Isobel shook her head and clutched her husband's hand "I can't leave you. What will you do?"

"I must defend her Majesty. Now, don't think of me, just go," Sir Robert murmured.

"All of you," Lady Isobel called to her maids "At my side. Come on."

The Doctor removed their shackles with his sonic "It could be a form of light modulated species triggered by specific wavelengths. Did it say what it wanted?"

"The Queen, the Crown, the throne…" Rose shrugged "You name it." There was a crash of the wolf bursting through a wooden door. The Doctor ran out to investigate before hurrying back a moment later, grabbing Rose and Tyra.

"Fire! Fire!" the Steward shouted, shooting at the wolf when it approached them.

The Doctor clapped his hands, trying to herd the men around them away "Alright, you men. We should retreat upstairs. Come with me."

"I'll not retreat," the Steward snapped "The battle's done. There is no creature on God's Earth that could survive such an assault."

The Doctor watched the man with exasperation "I'm telling you, come upstairs."

"And I'm telling you, sir, I will sleep well tonight with that thing's hide upon my wall." He stepped into the corridor, glaring back at the Doctor "Must have crawled away to die."

Tyra's head snapped up to the ceiling when something started moving around up there. She was about to mention it but before she could, a furry arm reached down from the ceiling, hoisting the man up.

"There's nothing we can do," the Doctor breathed over the sound of snarling and a body being ripped apart "Tyra, come on." He pulled her along for what felt like the hundredth time that night.

Sir Robert came to a halt in front of the staircase and called out "Your Majesty? Your Majesty?"

"Sir Robert?" the monarch questioned, coming down the stairs with Klaus at her heels "What's happening? I heard such terrible noises."

"Your Majesty, we've got to get out," Sir Robert said sharply "But what of Father Angelo? Is he still here?"

The Queen looked at Klaus before she dismissed the man's worry "Captain Reynolds disposed of him."

"The front door's no good," the Doctor murmured "It's been boarded shut. Pardon me, your Majesty. You'll have to let it out of a window."

Tyra grabbed a hold of Klaus' sleeve when he came to a stop next to her "There really is a wolf here, Nik…"

"It's no werewolf though, is it?"

"Not our kinds at least," she shook her head "This one is more werewolf-y instead of looking like a normal wolf. But it's still a wolf." Klaus wrapped an arm around Tyra's shoulder and followed the others to the drawing-room.

"Excuse my manners, ma'am," Sir Robert started "But I shall go first, to better assist her Majesty's egress."

The Queen nodded lightly "A noble sentiment, my Sir Walter Raleigh."

"Yeah, any chance you could hurry up?" the Doctor rolled his eyes, dropping his Scottish accent in the process. Sir Robert opened the window, causing the monks outside to open fire "I reckon the monkey boys want us to stay inside."

"Do they know who I am?" the Queen exclaimed.

Tyra sighed and pulled the Queen further away from the window "They do. Apparently, that was the plan, your Majesty."

"What do you mean?"

Rose took over, glancing at the blond man appreciatively "The wolf's lined you up for a… a biting."

"Stop this talk," Queen Victoria snapped "There can't be an actual wolf." As if the wolf heard what she said, another loud howl echoed through the estate.

Rose latched onto the Doctor's arm "What do we do?"

"We run," the Doctor shrugged, freeing his arm. He looked around at everyone.

"Is that it?" Rose frowned.

The Doctor raised his eyebrow at her "You got any silver bullets?"

"Not on me, no."

"There we are then, we run," the Doctor pointed out.

Tyra shook her head "If we run, we just make ourselves more of a target than we already are."

"We have to find out what this thing is, Ty," the Doctor argued.

"Not if we kill it," she shot back.

The Doctor shook his head "No."

"Your aversion to killing is honourable and whatever," Tyra muttered in annoyance "But at the moment very much unappreciated."

"Tyra, we can't just kill it," the Doctor tried.

Tyra pinched the bridge of her nose "Look, that thing wants the Queen and I – for one – won't stand by until you find out." The two vampires whirled to the door when the sound of panting came closer and closer until it was almost directly behind them "You would do well to get away from the doors."

"What's happening?" Queen Victoria breathed, frozen to the place.

"Nik, you take the left, I take the right," Tyra called to her brother.

The Doctor grabbed a hold of her arm "Don't."

In the moment it took Tyra to free herself, the wolf lunged forward, snapping its jaws at the Queen "Dammit," Tyra cursed, tackling the wolf away. Klaus came up from the other side, helping his sister in subduing the trashing wolf "Do it, Nik."

Klaus didn't have to be told twice as he shifted, catching the arm that had clawed at his sister's face. He ripped the limb off, throwing it in the corner closest to them. When the other arm went to slash at him, he punched his fist into the wolf's chest, ripping out its heart. To make sure it really was dead, the two Originals took off the head, making blood splatter even more than it had before. Both of them were drenched from head to toe "I'll take care of this," Klaus murmured, sneering at the pile in the corner. While he didn't hate werewolves as much as his sister did, he knew when to put them down.

Sir Robert looked at the girl worriedly "You are bleeding."

"Don't worry," Tyra waved off "It's already healing." She wiped at the wound with her ruined sleeve and showed him to healing wounds "See?

"This is phenomenal," Sir Robert breathed, studying the wounds that were slowly knitting itself together.

"Are you alright, ma'am?" Tyra asked, seeing the Queen holding onto her hand.

That made the Doctor's attention snap from the dead wolf to the monarch "Your Majesty? Did it bite you?"

"No," she denied "It's – it's a cut, that's all."

"If that thing bit you…"

She sent him a warning look "It's nothing," she waved off."

The Doctor reached out his hand "Let me see."

"It is nothing."

* * *

The next morning, Tyra was leaning against Klaus tiredly. She had spent most of the night trying to get the blood out of her hair. In short, she was exhausted and the nightmares she had after finally falling asleep, didn't help either.

"Now," the Queen started "I believe there are several things that needs saying."

"Your Majesty…" Tyra started only to be cut off by the woman.

Queen Victoria held up her hand "You have shown the courage I knew you had, Lady Mikaelson, Lord Mikaelson. What I do not condone is the behaviour of you." She turned to face Rose "You have no respect for authority." When Rose went to speak, Queen Victoria held up her hand "I also don't understand why someone as honourable as Lady Mikaelson bothers herself with the likes of you."

"Your Majesty," Tyra sighed.

"Your Majesty," the Doctor cut in "If I may."

She shook her head "I am not amused," she said, ignoring Rose's cheering "Not remotely amused. And henceforth, I banish the two of you."

The Doctor gaped "I'm sorry?"

"You did not listen to Lady Mikaelson when she clearly had our wellbeing in mind." She glared at him darkly "I do not have it in me to reward your behaviour, Doctor, and now you are exiled from this empire, never to return. I don't know what you are, the two of you, or where you're from but I know that I do not want to know. Lady Tyra, at least, had the sense to care for the people who would have died. You will leave these shores and you will reflect, I hope, on how you came to stray so far from all that is good, and how much longer you may survive this terrible life. Now leave my world and never return."

* * *

Tyra was about to follow Rose and the Doctor when Klaus tightened his grip on her arm "Oh, no. You are coming with me."

"Nik," she protested, pleading with the Doctor silently.

He looked at her for a moment before turning around "Rose and I are going to look for a ride back to the Tardis."

"Thanks," she grumbled, slightly scared that she had pushed the Doctor too far. That he would drop her off and leave her. She looked after them for a moment before looking at Klaus "I'm not coming back with you."

"I'm not leaving you here, Tyra," Klaus pointed out "You belong with family. Why do you even want to go with them?" She ripped her arm out of his grip and was about to rush off when Klaus tackled her into the dirt "I'm not stupid, little sister. You will come with me whether you like it or not. We can do this the easy way or the hard way… Which is it going to be."

Tyra went limp under Klaus, making him think that he won before she quickly flipped them around, twisting her brother's neck before he realised what happened "I'm sorry," she whispered, carefully placing his head on the ground. With a long look at the body of Klaus, she ran in the direction the Doctor and Rose had left in.

"What happened?" the Doctor asked, unable to hide his worry as he saw Tyra. She was covered in dirt, her hair tangled.

She shook her head, climbing onto the cart "We should go before he wakes up."

"Who was that?" Rose asked "I was hoping I would get to talk to him some more."

Tyra sent her a look of disgust "Yeah, no way."

"What?" Rose demanded, slightly annoyed "Are you his keeper?"

"No, but I'm his sister," Tyra shot back "I know one thing and that is that Nik would have killed you."

Rose huffed, unable to believe that she met one of Tyra's brothers. Well, he was as much of a monster as she was, so maybe she shouldn't be surprised.

* * *

As soon as they were back in the Tardis, Tyra slumped down tiredly. She would have gone to her room but the Doctor had practically blocked the door, preventing her from leaving.

"Rose," the Doctor spoke up demandingly, leaning against the console "I believe you have something to say to Tyra?"

Rose huffed and crossed her arms "Yeah. You're a nut job."

"Rose," the Doctor exclaimed "I get that you're still new to this whole vampire thing but I'm serious."

She noticed the look he was sending her and swallowed "I'm sorry," she muttered, glaring at Tyra.

Tyra tilted her head in confusion "For what?"

"For slapping you," Rose mumbled reluctantly. The Doctor cleared his throat "And for insulting you just now."

"Okay," Tyra shrugged, getting up. Honestly, she didn't care for Rose anymore. The other girl had messed up enough for Tyra to demand retribution. Rose could be happy that she kept herself back. Although Tyra wasn't sure how long that would still hold out "As that it? I need to get out of this dress."

An hour and one very long and hot shower later, Tyra found herself back in the Pavilion. She preferred the atmosphere to the rest of the Tardis. I was just so peaceful and quiet here. Nowhere she could get lost or where people other than the Doctor could find her. She was close to falling asleep to the soft sounds of the river when she heard the soft footsteps she had come to associate with the Doctor "Here you are," he spoke up once he was close enough "I was looking for you."

"Well, you found me," Tyra told him quietly, not bothering to open her eyes. She didn't want to see the rejection on his face. It was her own fault though. She had practically ignored him since the day before, so she really couldn't blame him.

The Doctor sighed, sitting down behind her, carefully easing her head onto his thigh "Tyra…"

"Please don't say it," she whispered "I don't want to leave."

"What are you talking about?" the Doctor frowned "You think I'm going to throw you out?"

Tyra looked up at him "Aren't you? I killed that thing…"

"It was the only way," the Doctor sighed even if he hated to admit it "I might not like you killing but… You had a reason. The wolf killed people already." He ran his hand through her hair "I want to talk about what's been bothering you."

She struggled to get up, dislodging his hand from her hair "It's not important."

"Yes, it is," he argued "You are important."

"Am I, though?" Tyra asked "Cassandra had no right spilling everything."

The Doctor's shoulders slumped "Is that it? No, she didn't have a right but she still did it."

"Yes, and now I have to live with Rose knowing," Tyra grumbled "I just don't want to care anymore."

"No," the Doctor shook his head, turning her to face him "No, you don't get to think that. I don't care how down you are. You have me now, alright? I care about you and I don't like knowing that you want to die."

Tyra swallowed, studying his eyes thoroughly "I don't really. Not anymore. Not since… Since I met you."

**Omake **

Klaus stormed into the Plantation House, fuming mad. It had been several weeks since Tyra had left with that – that Doctor guy. He didn't know how she could have snapped his neck as easily as she had but that didn't matter. The thought alone made him even angrier than he already was. Tyra had never been particularly strong. At least not compared to the rest of them. Although that didn't mean much. None of Klaus' siblings were quite as strong as he was. It was a small difference but the wolf part – whether it was locked away or not – apparently did make some kind of difference.

Elijah looked up from the book he was reading when the door slammed open "Brother," he greeted calmly "I take it your business didn't go well?" At Klaus' glare, he frowned "What happened?"

"Where's Tyra?" Klaus asked instead of answering the question.

Elijah blinked "Where she always is. Out with Kol somewhere."

Klaus shook his head "She was in England."

"Pardon?"

"Tyra broke my neck and ran. With a man… They seemed close enough," Klaus explained.

Elijah looked at his younger brother with worry in his eyes "Niklaus, Tyra has been here the entire time you were gone."

"That's impossible. You can't be in two places at once," Klaus muttered. He was certain that it had been Tyra. They had talked about Henrik after all. But how could she have been here and there at once? "Unless…"

"You think this is a ploy?" Elijah demanded, realising where his brother's thoughts had taken him.

Klaus nodded absentmindedly "This has 'witches' written all over it. You know that both Kol and Tyra have contacts with the covens in and out of New Orleans."

"What is your plan?"

"You know exactly what my plan is, Elijah," Klaus pointed out.

Elijah shook his head "No. You will not put them back into those coffins. I don't care what you think they did."

"Oh, I plan on hearing all about that plan of theirs first," Klaus murmured, speeding off to grab not two but three daggers. He would do what's necessary "You can either stand by me as you have done for the past centuries or you can side with them. It's your choice, Elijah." Klaus tilted his head when he heard the front door open "I would hurry if I were you."

Elijah's shoulders slumped the smallest bit as he sighed "Let's find out what they got themselves into now."

Tyra walked into the living room with Kol, quietly discussing some things to do with the Alpha Coven. They were trying to get one of the American groups settled in one of the towns around New Orleans, far away from the coven here but it was proving difficult. She looked up with a small smile when she caught sight of Niklaus standing there "You're back." When she saw the dark look in his eyes, her smile fell "What's going on?"

"How did you get to England?"

Tyra frowned "What are you talking about? I haven't been to England for ages."

Elijah put a calming hand on Niklaus' shoulder "What were you doing while Niklaus was in England?"

Tyra and Kol exchanged a look of confusion and a hint of panic. They didn't want their siblings to find out about the coven. Not with the track record they had with witches "I was here. And you know that Kol and I were seeing how the colonies around New Orleans were coming along."

"Don't lie to me," Klaus hissed, surging forward, intent on getting his little sister to start talking.

Kol was in front of Tyra immediately, protecting his baby sister from Klaus' ire. He had a suspicion on what was going on but whether he was right or not, he would protect his sister after failing her again and again "Stay away from her, Nik. She did nothing."

Klaus scoffed "As if I believe you of all people. Who's the Doctor, Tyra? How do you know him?"

Tyra shook her head, tears of frustration springing up in her eyes. She didn't know a Doctor. What kind of name was that anyway? She had no idea what was going on and the unfamiliarity scared her a little. Especially with how angry Niklaus seemed to be. His anger usually lead to one thing in particular and this time, she really didn't want to go back into the coffin. Not like the other times.

"Nothing? That's what I thought." Klaus stared into Kol's eyes, having a silent battle with his younger brother "Elijah!"

"No," Kol called out when Elijah after a moment of hesitation grabbed his arms, pulling his youngest brother away from the scene a little "Let me go, Elijah. Don't you dare hurt her again." He struggled harder when Klaus stepped closer to Tyra, a grim look on his face "Ty, run. Get away from here."

Tyra turned around and was about to do as he said when strong arms wrapped around her "Don't even try, love. You won't get away from me this time."

"I really don't know what you're talking about," she breathed, freezing when she felt the tip of a dagger digging into her back "Nik, please."

"I'm sorry, sister," Klaus told her "But you had your chance to explain." He whirled her around, stabbing the dagger into her chest all the while Kol kept screaming at him to stop.

"You bastard," Kol snarled, straining against Elijah's hold on him "You fucking bastard. I'm going to kill you."

Klaus rolled his eyes in exasperation. It was the same every time he daggered Tyra whether in front of Kol or not. To tell the truth, he was a little jealous of their bond "Let this be a lesson to you, Kol. No one crosses me. You have one chance to tell me what you were doing before you're joining her. Well?"

"We did nothing wrong."

"Then do explain how Tyra managed to be in England while she was supposedly here the whole time," Klaus growled, twirling the second dagger in his hand.

Kol froze for the shortest time but it was enough for his siblings to notice. Ever since Klaus mentioned the Doctor, he knew what had happened… Tyra must have known that this would have happened. Maybe she pissed him off on purpose because she could remember this but he shook his head "That's why you daggered her? Because she didn't tell you how this was possible?" Kol snorted "Did it ever occur to you that she had no idea?"

"Yes," Klaus agreed "But you do."

Kol clenched his jaw shut "She's going to have to tell you herself." He noticed Klaus about to open his mouth "As soon as she knows that is."

"And when will that be?"

"What am I? Psychic?" Kol rolled his eyes "Just let it go. I won't be telling you anything."

Klaus shrugged "Have it your way, then." The second dagger slid into Kol's chest easily. He continued glaring while he desiccated. Klaus stepped over Tyra's body "Put them in their coffins, would you, Elijah? I'm starving."


	5. School Reunion

Tyra walked into the classroom with the teacher she had been shadowing for the past few days, Mr Parsons. He was the History teacher… Apparently, the Doctor thought it funny to make Tyra a teaching assistant for History. According to him, it was the perfect subject for her. She wasn't too sure about it since she had had to bite her tongue more than once these past couple of days.

"Hello, students," Mr Parsons greeted with a smile, putting down his books on the table at the front of the classroom "Today we will be learning about Christopher Columbus. Does anyone know who he was?" A few students hesitatingly raised their hands "Melissa?"

"Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492," Melissa replied.

Mr Parsons nodded "Correct."

Tyra shifted, drawing the man's attention to her "Actually," she spoke up. She had tried to stop herself from speaking up for the past days but now she couldn't not say anything "Columbus didn't discover America. It was discovered over five centuries earlier by the Vikings at the end of the 10th century."

"There's no proof of the Vikings ever settling in America," the History teacher blustered "Why would they leave their homeland?"

"They fled from the Plague. Families who have lost people to the disease decided to start a new life somewhere completely new. They started sailing and eventually reached Greenland and the north of America," she explained.

Mr Parson snorted "Right. As I said… There is no proof of this happening and I would know. I studied History after all." He stopped for a moment and tilted his head "There was no Plague in the north of Europe at the time. What are your sources? You do have some?"

"I do," she said "And there was a Plague. I have family journals that date back as far as the end of the 10th century. My ancestors lost their oldest daughter to the illness and left Europe behind. They settled in what you know as Virginia today and that's where they stayed until the village was decimated in 1001."

The bell rang, signalling the end of class. The students who had been watching the argument like a tennis match quickly gathered their stuff and escaped the battle. Mr Parsons, on the other hand, didn't move. He was still looking at Tyra, unsure of whether he believed her "If your family has proof, then why did no one ever publish it?"

"Because it's my family's history. It's something we guard with our lives," Tyra explained "As far as I know there are some sites around the US that proof that Vikings were there. Runic inscriptions and similar things. People just never thought it possible and ignored the signs telling them they were wrong."

A knock on the door startled the two of them out of their conversation. The Doctor was leaning against the doorframe "Are you ready for lunch, Ty? He looked from the teacher to Tyra and back with a raised eyebrow "Everything alright here?"

"Sure," Tyra shrugged, making her way over to him "We just disagreed over who discovered America."

"Ah," the Doctor snorted and nodded to Mr Parsons "I hope she didn't annoy you too much. I've known Tyra for over a year now and even I have to admit that her family was… everywhere historically. Literally everywhere."

Mr Parsons blinked in surprise "No, no. It – Thank you for giving me a new insight, Miss Mikaelson."

"That was a reaction I didn't expect," Tyra hummed "Thank you, sir. I'm sorry that I interrupted class."

He waved off "All is well, all is well. Now off to lunch with you. I'll see you in the staff room later."

"Yes, sir." Tyra walked to the canteen with the Doctor, glancing around the school curiously. It's been two days and she was still a little weirded out by being in a school. It was the first time she actively visited lessons. Even if it was as a teaching assistant "I've never actually been inside a school before. Not much further than the office."

The Doctor gaped down at her. He had known but it was still weird to hear "I thought you were joking. You really never went to school? Not even out of boredom?"

Tyra shook her head "I have better things to do out of boredom, Doctor. My brothers taught me most of what I know. The rest I figured out as time passed. I think Rebekah has been to school before though.

"I can't blame you," the Doctor shrugged "School is pretty much useless."

Tyra snorted when a group of students stared at the Doctor with wide eyes "Maybe you shouldn't say that out loud. Impressionable young ears around." She nodded to the group when the Doctor frowned down at her.

"Oh," he breathed, scratching his neck in embarrassment "Yeah… My bad." He held the door to the canteen open for Tyra and followed her inside.

Tyra wrinkled her nose at the smell inside. Something smelt weird and she didn't like it at all. While she didn't mind the smell of chips on good days, here it was almost unbearable. The only thing that her nose registered was the smell of oil and it made her sick.

Rose glared at the Doctor as soon as the two passed her station in the line. She was slopping some mash onto their trays angrily. The Doctor winked at Tyra, nudging her to the side "You did that on purpose, didn't you?"

"I'm sure, I don't know what you mean," he replied innocently.

A little while later, Tyra was pushing her mash around on the plate while the Doctor was nibbling at one of his chips with a puzzled frown "You alright?"

"Two days," Rose hissed, stalking over to the table the Doctor and Tyra were sitting at.

"Sorry," the Doctor grinned, gesturing to the left where Rose was wiping the table "Could you just? There's a bit of gravy." Rose glared harder and started wiping more harshly "No, no, just… Just there."

Tyra snorted, earning her a glare as well. She held up her hands in a surrender gesture and Rose turned back to the Doctor "Two days, we've been here."

"Blame your boyfriend," the Doctor shrugged "He's the one who put us onto this. And he was right… Boy in class this morning, got a knowledge way beyond planet Earth."

Rose sighed and sat down across from Tyra "You eating those chips?" She gestured to their trays.

"Yeah," the Doctor mumbled "They're a bit different…"

Rose pulled both trays towards her and started shovelling chips into her mouth much to Tyra's disgust "I think they're gorgeous," she mumbled, her mouth still full "Wish I had school dinners like this."

"It's very well behaved, this place," the Doctor pointed out, looking around the quiet students.

"Hmm," Rose hummed disinterestedly, still stuffing her face. By now, she had finished the Doctor's tray and moved onto Tyra's.

The Doctor didn't even look at her while Tyra couldn't look away. There was a grimace on her face, watching Rose "I thought there'd be happy slapping hoodies," the Doctor pointed out "Happy slapping hoodies with ASBOs… Happy slapping hoodies with ASBOs and ringtones." He grinned at both girls brightly "Huh? Huh? Oh, yeah… Don#t tell me I don't fit in."

Tyra leaned over to him "You don't fit in," she mumbled into his ear.

"You are not permitted to leave your station during a sitting," the head dinner lady reprimanded Rose sharply.

Rose looked up at the woman in shocked surprise "I was just talking to this teacher."

"Hello," the Doctor waved, poking at Tyra with his fork.

"Hey," she complained, grabbing it out of his hand "Act your age for once, would you?"

Rose rolled her eyes before addressing the other dinner lady "They don't like the chips."

"The menu has been specifically designed by the headmaster to improve concentration and performance," the head dinner lady explained annoyed "Now, get back to work."

"See?" Rose gestured, turning back to them "This is me. Dinner lady."

The Doctor smirked "I'll have the crumble."

"I'm so going to kill you," Rose muttered, walking back into the kitchen.

Tyra knew that Rose was more than mad about the whole dinner lady thing. Especially since Tyra got to be a TA. The Doctor had argued that the only subject he could put in a teaching assistant was History and since Tyra practically lived through most of the curriculum, he decided that she would be better suited than Rose. She had been avoiding Tyra ever since the whole Queen Victoria thing.

* * *

The Doctor and Tyra were in the staff room with the other teachers, waiting for Mr Finch. The headmaster had called a meeting for some reason that Tyra wasn't told. She was sitting on a table, her head leaning against the Doctor's shoulder as she looked up at Mr Parsons curiously "Yesterday, I had a twelve-year-old girl give me the exact height of the Walls of Troy in cubits," he pointed out.

The Doctor nodded "Ty told me about it… It's been like this ever since the new headmaster arrived?"

"Finch arrived three months ago," Parsons nodded thoughtfully "Next day, half the staff got the flu. Finch replaced them with that lot, except for the teacher you replaced and that was just plain weird, her winning the lottery like that."

"How's that weird?" the Doctor questioned, trying to sound as innocent as possible.

Parsons shrugged "She never played," he exclaimed "Said the ticket was posted through her door at midnight."

"Hmm," the Doctor grinned down at Tyra "The world is very strange."

It was then that the headmaster entered the room with an older woman trailing after him "Excuse me, colleagues. A moment of your time," he called out "May I introduce Miss Sarah Jane Smith."

Tyra sat up, glancing at the Doctor next to her. Was this the same Sarah Jane who had travelled with him? From the look on his face, she had to be. Out of all the Companions, it was her Tyra wanted to meet the most. Well, not, not really. But she was definitely in the top five of Companions Tyra wanted to meet and more or less the only one still around.

"Miss Smith is a journalist who's writing a profile about me for the Sunday Times. I thought it might be useful for her to get a view from the trenches, so to speak. Don't spare my blushes," Mr Finch said, turning to leave the room.

Sarah Jane looked around before her eyes fell on the Doctor. She walked over to them with a smile "Hello," she greeted.

"Oh, I should think so," the Doctor beamed, shoving at Tyra when he heard her suppressed snort. He knew he was being awkward but he couldn't help it.

"And… You are?"

The Doctor blinked "Hm? Er, Smith. John Smith."

"John Smith," Sarah Jane mused "I used to have a friend who sometimes went by that name."

The Doctor raised a shoulder in a nonchalant shrug "Well, it's a common name."

"He was a very uncommon man," she smiled wistfully "Nice to meet you." She glanced to Tyra apologetically "Sorry, I didn't catch your name."

"Tyra Mikaelson," she introduced herself, shaking the offered hand "I'm a TA."

Miss Smith brightened up "How is it? Fun?"

"It's alright," Tyra shrugged awkwardly "I mean, I love History but I'm not so sure about the teaching part… Or the teenager part."

"Oh, well. There are always more jobs out there," Sarah Jane shrugged "You'll find something that you're interested in sooner or later." She looked at the Doctor who had been staring at her the whole time, shifting in discomfort "So – er – have you worked here long?"

The Doctor shook his head "No. Er, it's only our second day."

"You're new, then," Sarah Jane nodded "So, what do you think of the school? I mean, this new curriculum?" She leaned closer to the two and lowered her voice "So many children getting ill. Doesn't that strike you as odd?"

"You don't sound like someone just doing a profile," the Doctor pointed out with an amused glint in his eyes.

"Well," Sarah Jane drew herself up "No harm in a little investigation while I'm here."

The Doctor inclined his head "No. Good for you." He stared after her in wonder when she moved away to talk to some of the other teachers "Good for you. Oh, good for you, Sarah Jane Smith."

Tyra leaned her head back against his shoulder "You should stop grinning like that. It's creepy and I think you scared her."

"Was it really that bad?" the Doctor blinked, tilting his head in question.

"You have no idea. Hell, I would have creeped out by you just then," Tyra pointed out.

The Doctor sighed and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, watching Sarah Jane talk to the other teachers on the other side of the room "What do you think?"

"Of her?" Tyra questioned "I like her. She seems like an amazing person and I know why you chose to take her along for as long as you did."

* * *

The rest of the day passed quickly for all parties involved and soon the Doctor, Rose, Mickey and Tyra were sneaking back into the school after it had gone dark. Rose looked around and shivered "Oh, it's weird seeing school at night. It just feels wrong. When I was a kid, I used to think all the teachers slept in school."

Tyra was standing by Mickey, quietly talking about anything and everything. They hadn't gotten too much chance to talk since they got back since Rose all over Mickey, constantly complaining about her new lunch lady role.

The Doctor clapped his hands "Alright, team." He stopped and grimaced at his own words "Oh, I hate people who say team. Er, gang… Comrades?"

"Comrades?" Tyra raised her eyebrow, wrinkling her nose.

"Anyway," the Doctor shook his head "Rose, go to the kitchen. Get a sample of that oil. Mickey, the new staff are all Maths teachers. Go and check the Maths department. Ty, go and show him where it is. I'm going to look in Finch's office. Be back here in ten minutes." With that, he walked off, leaving the other three in the hallway.

Rose looked up at Mickey "You going to be alright?"

"Me? Please," he scoffed "Infiltration and investigation? I'm an expert at this." He left only to come back a moment later, pouting at Tyra "Where is the Maths department?"

Tyra shook her head "Come on."

"Thanks," Mickey murmured as they walked through the corridors. He peeked over at her "Are you alright though?"

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" she frowned in confusion. She was quite a bit better than she had been a few days ago.

Mickey shrugged "Just seems like you've been quieter since you got back."

"Really?" Tyra questioned "I didn't notice… It's just – I was honestly scared that the Doctor would throw me out."

"Why?" he blinked "I mean, you seem to be close. Why would you think that?"

Tyra sighed, running a hand over her face "I ripped a werewolf – fake werewolf – apart in front of him, Rose and a few Humans."

"Woah," Mickey gasped "Are you serious? That is epic."

"Epic isn't what I would call it," Tyra shot back, shaking her head "Didn't help that Queen Victoria went off on the Doctor and Rose – mostly Rose – about how she doesn't understand why I would hang around them."

"You know Queen…?" Mickey cut himself off with a loud scream that had Tyra covering her ears. A bunch of dead rats had fallen out of the cupboard Mickey had opened and directly on him.

Tyra rubbed at her ears with a small glare "Really?"

"They're rats," he gasped, hiding his bigger frame behind Tyra's smaller one.

"Dead rats, Mickey," she pointed out, walking over to crouch in front of the pile on the floor. The dead rodents were vacuum packed and as fresh as dead rats could be "It's not like they'll come back to life and eat your brain."

Mickey paled a little more "Zombie rats," he whimpered.

Tyra groaned, straightening up with one of the rats in hand "Oh, dear Lord… Mickey, really?"

The Doctor, Rose and Sarah Jane crashed into the room, looking around frantically. Mickey scratched his head in embarrassment "Sorry. Sorry, it was only me."

"He was looking through the cupboards and found these," Tyra spoke up, throwing the rat she was holding at the Doctor.

Rose screeched and jumped away from him "Oh, my God, they're rats. Dozens of rats. Vacuum packed rats."

The Doctor caught the rat easily, turning it over before looking up at Mickey "And you decided to scream?"

"It took me by surprise," Mickey pointed out defensively.

"Like a little girl?"

Tyra rolled her eyes "I think we get it, Doctor." She looked past him to Sarah Jane "Nice to see you again."

"You too," she gave back, looking at Tyra curiously.

"Hello, can we focus?" Rose spoke up with a glare to Sarah Jane. How dare she just show up out of the blue? She chose to ignore that there was someone who had known the Doctor for longer than she had "Does anyone notice anything strange about this? Rats in school?"

"Well, obviously they use them in Biology lessons. They dissect them. Or maybe you haven't reached that bit yet. How old are you?" Sarah Jane pointed out, staring at Rose with disdain in her eyes.

Rose huffed "Excuse me, no one dissects rats in school anymore. They haven't done that for years. Where are you from, the Dark Ages?"

"Anyway," the Doctor cut in, more than a little uncomfortable with the situation. Really, the last thing he'd need would be Tyra joining in. Then again, that is something he couldn't see her doing, so thank the universe for small mercies "Everything started when Mister Finch arrived. We should go and check his office."

Out in the corridor, the Doctor, Mickey and Tyra walked behind Rose and Sarah Jane. Tyra was keeping an eye on the Doctor's reaction to all of this. A part of her felt bad for him but this was Rose's doing. Well, Rose and Sarah Jane were both at fault but Rose seemed to be doing most of the spitting.

"Sorry," Rose started "I don't mean to be rude but… Who are you?"

"Sarah Jane Smith," Sarah Jane introduced herself "I used to travel with the Doctor."

Rose immediately donned a glare, already fed up with the woman's apparent bragging "Oh? Well, he never mentioned you."

"Oh," Sarah nodded in realization, looking at the floor sadly.

The Doctor shot Tyra a panicked look, causing her to sigh in exasperation "You… Did you really sneak on the Tardis when he wasn't looking?"

Sarah Jane looked at the girl in surprise, her eyes softening. It seemed that the Doctor had talked about her. Just not to Rose… Or he did and she just wanted to hit where it hurts "I did," she smiled fondly "I ended up walking around the Middle Ages."

Tyra winced "Speaking of culture shock. At least corsets hadn't been invented yet. Those are a bitch and a half. And people were complaining about me always wearing men's clothing…"

Rose whirled on the Doctor "You talk to her and not me?" she demanded "She knew about regeneration too…"

"We have a deal," Tyra cut in before the Doctor could try and defend himself "I tell him about my past and he tells me about his."

"What's so interesting about your past? I wouldn't want to hear about you killing people. Just like you did with that wolf," Rose muttered quiet enough so that no one but Tyra really understood what she had been saying.

Tyra sneered "Careful, Rose. Next time, I'll just let you get eaten. How about that?"

The Doctor looked from one woman to the other before clearing his throat loudly "We should check out the office now," he said just the littlest bit too loud.

"Tyra?" Mickey called out, jogging to catch up to her "Okay?"

"I'm fine," she sighed, looking away from him. It wasn't that she didn't know Rose's stance about Tyra being a vampire but it still annoyed her to no end. She got the message. Her friendship with Rose was over once and for all. Tyra was barely hanging onto her patience. The only reason she wasn't snapping at Rose left and right or compelling her more was because Tyra knew that the Doctor would disapprove. Why she restrained herself, she didn't know. Rose was clearly not even trying.

Once they reached the office, the Doctor used his sonic screwdriver on the lock "Maybe those rats were food."

"Food for what?" Rose questioned, leaning against the Doctor's back.

The Doctor shifted, pushing her back a little. He opened the door, peeking inside "Rose, you know you used to think all the teachers slept in the school? Well, they do…" With that, he pushed the door open to reveal a group of giant bats hanging from the ceiling.

"No way," Mickey muttered from where he was standing by Tyra's side. His hand reached over to clutch at Tyra's sleeve, suppressing the urge to run.

Tyra sighed, grasping his hand with hers "Come on, let's get out of here," she whispered, hyperaware of the bats. With every shift, her eyes snapped to them, more than a little aware that their hearing was almost as good as hers. The others followed them after the Doctor closed the door. Tyra stiffened when she heard a screech from behind her.

* * *

As soon as they got out of the school, Mickey started pacing, shaking his head violently "I'm not going back in there. No way."

"Those were teachers," Rose pointed out breathlessly.

"Wen Finch arrived, he brought with him seven new teachers, four dinner ladies and a nurse. Thirteen. Thirteen big bat people," the Doctor nodded and went to go back inside "Come on."

Mickey scoffed "Come on? You've got to be kidding."

"I need the Tardis," the Doctor explained impatiently "I've got to analyse that oil from the kitchen."

"As much as I would love to go back in there," Tyra spoke up "Mickey has the right idea. We woke up at least one of them. I think we're safer out here."

Sarah Jane smiled at the Doctor, looking very smug "I might be able to help you there. I've got something to show you." She lead them to her car and opened the boot, keeping her body in front of the contents of her boot.

"K9," the Doctor exclaimed happily "Rose Tyler, Mickey Smith, Tyra Mikaelson, allow me to introduce K9, well, K9 Mark Three to be precise."

"Why does he look so disco?" Rose grimaced.

The Doctor shot her an affronted stare "Oi! Listen, in the year five thousand, this was cutting edge. What's happened to him?"

"Oh," Sarah Jane shrugged "One day, he just… Nothing."

"Well, why didn't you try and get him repaired?" the Doctor pressed.

Tyra groaned and caught Sarah Jane's eyes "Didn't you just say something about the year five thousand? How the hell would she have found someone to repair K9, Doc?"

The Doctor ignored her, scratching K9's ear gently "Ooh, what's the nasty lady done to you, eh?"

Rose watched the Doctor while he was petting K9 and talking quietly with Sarah Jane. She cleared her throat "Look, no offence, but could you two stop petting for a minute? Never mind the tin dog. We're busy."

* * *

The group of six – including K9 – relocated to the coffee shop that was just across the road from the school. Tyra curled up on a chair next to where the Doctor had started working on K9 with Sarah Jane across from them on the other side of the table. Rose and Mickey were in a booth a few tables over.

Tyra was fiddling with her phone, about to shoot off a text when Mickey made a strangled noise "I can't believe I forgot," he cursed himself.

"What are you talking about, Mickey?" Rose asked, watching him get up in confusion.

"Ty," Mickey called out "I'm supposed to tell you something."

Tyra blinked "What?"

"Your brother is looking for you," Mickey said, causing Tyra to stiffen.

She clenched her hands into fists "When was he here?"

"Just after you left the last time," Mickey shrugged "A few days after Christmas." He looked at her closely, ignoring the Doctor's and Sarah Jane's curious looks "He said that he is getting impatient, that he wants to talk to you."

"He didn't hurt you, did he?" Tyra asked quietly.

Mickey ruffled her hair with a smile "No. I was a bit surprised as well. He seemed to be slightly… angry."

Tyra let out a snort of laughter "Just slightly?" she questioned "He must not be angry with me then. Otherwise, he wouldn't have only been slightly angry."

"Why would he have been angry with you?" Sarah Jane asked "Sorry, did you say that was your brother?"

Tyra shrugged "One of them. And Nik doesn't need a reason to be angry at me. He usually finds something he doesn't agree with."

"He was a bit intense when we saw him before," the Doctor murmured "He was different from when we ran into him during World War Two."

"That's Nik," Tyra grumbled "He can be so… protective over us but then he turns around and stabs us in the back." She shook her head and looked up at Mickey "I don't want to talk about this. Are you sure, you're okay?"

"I'm fine. He didn't even touch me," Mickey assured her with a smile, slinking back to sit down next to Rose.

Tyra looked down at the phone she had dropped onto the table once the conversation had started '**You there?**' she texted Sienna. She hadn't really spoken with her friend in a while. There normally were periods of silence between them until one tried to contact the other once in a while.

'**Yup. How are you doing? You left in quite a hurry when we spoke last,**' Sienna texted back almost immediately.

Tyra bit her lip, thinking of how to answer that statement '**I'm alright. Better than I have been in a while… How is the coven doing? Anything that needs to be taken care of?**'

'**I'm glad you're alright. You deserve to have some peace… Even if you don't seem to think so.**' Tyra read the annoyance in the words. Sienna had always been so adamant about her enjoying her existence. Life was sad enough with all the happy moments, so you shouldn't wallow in the bad ones. It was something her grandmother had taught her. Joanna had been a part of the Gemini Coven before Joshua Parker took over in the 1970s. The older witch hadn't agreed with his leadership and when it became apparent that some of the other members would listen to what she was saying, Joshua practically disowned her. What no one was aware of that the time was that Joanna had been pregnant, so as soon as she was able to, she came to find the nearest group of the Alpha Coven '**The Coven is doing well. Hey, do you know a Sheila Bennett?**'

'**Isn't she Abby's mother? Another descendant of Emily Bennett?**'

Sienna took a little longer to reply this time as if unsure of what to say exactly '**She contacted Abby. Apparently, her granddaughter is showing signs. Her powers are about to awaken…**'

'**That can be a bit of a worry if they're not careful but if Abby is anything to go by, Sheila is a good teacher. Keep an eye on the situation and interfere if you think you have to. Check in on them once she shows definite signs. There's not much we can do but see whether she gets the guidance and help if we're needed.**'

'**Noted. Are you coming back, Ty?**'

"Ty?" the Doctor cleared his throat, ripping Tyra out of the bubble she had been in.

She looked up from her phone in confusion "Hm?"

He gestured to Sarah Jane who smiled at Tyra's questioning look "I was asking whether you were alright. You know, with earlier?"

"Oh, yeah… Fine," she shrugged "Why?"

"You have been pretty quiet," the Doctor pointed out.

"I'm just tired," Tyra sighed, rubbing at her eyes "Haven't gotten a lot of sleep since the alien werewolf thing."

The Doctor raised an eyebrow but refrained from commenting on how she had ripped it apart "I know why you would have troubles but I'm a little surprised that it still affects you as much as it does."

"Does it matter?" Tyra challenged, glancing at the older woman across the table nervously.

The Doctor caught the look and sighed "We'll talk later, alright?"

"I take it you're going to insist?" Tyra questioned, running a hand down her face tiredly.

"Yup," he nodded, turning back to work on K9. It only took another few moments before K9 sprung to life "Oh, hey," the Doctor cheered "Now we're in business."

"Master," K9 answered happily.

"He recognises me," the Doctor grinned.

K9 nodded "Affirmative."

The Doctor looked over to where Rose was eating chip for the second time that day. Didn't that girl ever get tired of it? "Rose, give us the oil."

"I wouldn't touch it, though," Rose warned, handing it over "That dinner lady got all scorched."

"I'm no dinner lady," the Doctor pointed out with a grimace "And I don't often say that." He smeared some of the oil on the probe K9 was holding out to him "Here we go. Come on, boy. Here we go."

K9 pulled the sensor back "Oil. Ex-ex-ex-extract. Ana-ana-analysing."

"Listen to him," Mickey murmured in surprise "That's a voice."

Sarah Jane grinned at him jokingly "Careful. That's my dog."

"Confirmation of analysis," K9 proclaimed "Substance is Krillitane Oil."

"They're Krillitanes," the Doctor groaned.

Rose looked over at him with a worried look on her face "Is that bad?"

"Very," he nodded "Think of how bad things could possibly be and add another suitcase full of bad."

Tyra hummed "As long as it's only a suitcase. It could be worse." Everyone looked at her, causing her to shrug with a sheepish grin "I might not know about Krillitanes but I definitely know things that are worse."

"What are Krillitanes?" Sarah Jane questioned.

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair, messing it up even more than it already was "They're a composite race. Just like your culture is a mixture of traditions from all sorts of countries, people you've invaded or have been invaded by. You've got bits of Viking… Some more than others." Here he paused to waggle his eyebrows at Tyra "Bits of France, bits of whatever. The Krillitanes are the same. AN amalgam of the races they've conquered. But they take physical aspects as well. They cherry-pick the best bits from the people they destroy. That's why I didn't recognize them. The last time I saw Krillitanes, they looked just like us except they had really long necks."

"That still doesn't explain why they're here," Tyra pointed out "Or why they would choose something as stupid as long necks…" She shook her head "Never mind. If they were invading then they would target the government but they're not. They're at a school…"

"It's the children," the Doctor realised "They're doing something to the children. We have to stop them."

* * *

Mickey watched as Tyra slid K9 into the boot of Sarah Jane's car "So, what's the deal with the tin dog?"

"The Doctor likes travelling with an entourage," Sarah Jane explained "Sometimes they're humans, sometimes they're aliens and sometimes…" She leaned in to pet K9's head gently "Sometimes they're tin dogs." Sarah Jane looked at Tyra thoughtfully "You're really close to the Doctor. I might not know why but I know that he doesn't normally let a lot of people in. Can you promise me something?"

"I don't plan on hurting him, if that's what you mean," Tyra pointed out, raising her shoulder in a small half-shrug "I'm not… human, you could say. Actually, I'm about to old as the Doctor. He has a few centuries on me, I think but if you want to consider the age he's going by now, I'm actually older. We made a deal of sorts."

Mickey grinned, ruffling Tyra's hair "Well, I can't blame him for wanting to hear your adventures. Not just because of your siblings either."

Sarah Jane blinked "How – How old are you?"

"A little over a millennium, I think," Tyra told her "It's hard to keep track sometimes but I was born towards the end of 900 AD."

"Can I ask where you're from?" Sarah Jane questioned curiously "What planet?"

Tyra winced "Ah, I'm from Earth… I'm just not… Human anymore." She hesitated for a moment, glancing to Mickey. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, squeezing gently "Things happened and my mother… Well, she was a witch… I – My other siblings and I were turned into…"

Sarah Jane cut her off with a hand on her arm "You don't have to tell me if you're not comfortable."

"No, it's fine," she waved off "I'm – I'm a vampire."

"A… really? That's interesting," Sarah Jane murmured "You're going to have to tell me more sometime." She turned to look at Mickey "What about you? Where do you fit into the picture?"

Mickey grinned "Apart from being Tyra's badass friend?" Tyra let out a laugh, leaning against the car "I'm their Man in Havana. I'm the technical support. I'm –" He faltered, his grin slipping from his face only to replaced by wounded horror "Oh, my God. I'm the tin dog."

Tyra shook her head "You're not the tin dog. The Doctor is an idiot, Mickey. You know that he's just trying to annoy you." She sighed "Like you said. You're my friend and I protect my friends. Don't have too many of those. Especially ones that survived Nikki, so you know you're special."

"Nikki?" Mickey coughed in amusement, his hurt temporarily forgotten "I can't see him being happy with that nickname."

"Oh, he's not," Tyra grinned evilly "But he doesn't have much of a choice. Bekah and I always call him that when we want to annoy him. The perks of being the youngest siblings… and girls."

Sarah Jane watched their banter in amusement "Tyra is right, you know? You aren't a tin dog, Mickey. The Doctor just… occasionally forgets to consider the feelings of the people he walks over."

Tyra nodded, glancing over to where the Doctor and Rose were talking "I think that's part of the reason why he likes to have people travelling with him. It makes him see that while he sees and knows a lot, there are things that can change your perspective. He likes seeing our wonder at the world he has grown tired of."

"Well put," Sarah Jane hummed.

Tyra was about to ask Sarah Jane something else when a faint voice reached her ears "On my command," Finch ordered. Her head snapped around, eyes lingering on the roof where the Headmaster was standing with another of the Krillitanes. Their eyes met for a moment before Tyra turned back to the two she was standing with.

"Ty?" Mickey frowned as she grabbed a hold of his and Sarah Jane's arms, ready to pull them out of the way if necessary.

"Krillitane on the roof," she hissed quietly, her eyes straying back to the two forms on the roof. She tried to ignore the need to go over to where the Doctor and Rose were still talking. Although, it was more like Rose verbally attacking the Doctor for not telling her about Sarah Jane.

Finch froze for a moment, slowly repeating what the Doctor had just said "Time Lord." The Doctor looked up in time to see a giant bat swoop down towards them. Tyra pulled Mickey and Sarah Jane down, shielding them with her body which left her open for the Krillitane's claws. She felt them dug into her back as she was lifted from her feet.

"Tyra," Mickey cried out, alerting the others.

The Doctor looked after them, a small grimace on his face. Big mistake on their part… He hurried over to Mickey and Sarah Jane, checking them over "Are you alright?"

"Was that a Krillitane?" Sarah Jane questioned, her eyes following the ascend of the girl she had just been talking too. She looked way too relaxed for someone being pulled around by claws lodged in her body.

"Why did it take Tyra?" Mickey asked, looking to the roof where his friend had just been dropped. He couldn't really see anything but vague shapes, so he turned back to the Doctor with a frown.

The Doctor narrowed his eyes "I have no idea."

Rose wrapped her jacket around her tighter "What are we doing now? We can't get to the Tardis…"

"You can stay at mine for the night," Sarah Jane offered, glancing towards the school occasionally. She was worried that the Krillitanes would harm the girl but one glance at the Doctor made her relax a little. He seemed confident that she would be alright. At least, he wasn't storming the school, so she concluded that he was confident in Tyra's abilities.

The Doctor chewed on his lip for a moment "You three go ahead. I want to check something out first."

"Are you sure?" Rose asked "I can stay…"

"No, Rose," the Doctor shook his head "Go. I'll be there soon."

* * *

Tyra was dropped onto the roof, dropping to her feet gracefully. She feinted to the side when the Krillitane went to dig his claws into her again, moving around it quickly. Before any of them could react, the winged creature dropped to the ground with a snapped neck. She glared at the Headmaster before kicking the downed creature in the side "You'd do well to let me go if you don't want to end like your buddy down there."

"Hm," Finch murmured, studying Tyra curiously "It seems I was right about you. You definitely aren't as Human as you pretend to be."

"One more warning before I start murdering my way out of here," Tyra threatened, taking a couple of steps forward.

Finch just smirked "I'd like to see you try, kid. You might have gotten the drop on him but that won't be happening again."

"Wanna bet?" she asked, her eyes lighting up with the challenge. She looked at him for a short moment before speeding off in the direction of the door she could see.

Tyra ran through the school as fast as she could, not even stopping when a group of three Krillitanes were blocking the corridor. She just pushed past them and was gone before they could react. She practically crashed through the doors and into the parking lot "Miss me?" she asked, coming to a stop in front of the Doctor "Where are the others?"

The Doctor reached out, poking her shoulder "Are you hurt?"

"Not really, no," she shook her head "By the way, there might be a Krillitane less now. Just saying."

"What did you do?" the Doctor asked.

Tyra gestured to the roof "It grabbed me. I had a right to defend myself."

"Yes, yes," the Doctor nodded "I know. I told you before that I might not like it but I also know that you don't kill just for fun." He gestured for Tyra to follow him "Come on, we're going to walk to Sarah Jane's. It's not too far from here."

Tyra nodded, falling into step with him "I'm really sorry, you know? I don't really plan on killing them but if it keeps people safe…"

"Ty," the Doctor sighed "I don't want you to have to kill."

"I'm not just going to stand by. If there is a chance to solve this peacefully, I'm all for it," she told him "But can you honestly tell me that you would have managed to save that wolf? Because I know werewolves. They can't control themselves on the full moons."

"I guess," the Doctor mumbled before coming to a stop "Another thing, though. You said you don't sleep well. Why didn't you say anything?"

Tyra shrugged "It'll pass. It always does." She picked at the sleeve of her shirt "Normally, it takes about a week before the pain passes enough."

"Pain?" the Doctor asked "You mean…" His eyes widened "Henrik was your twin brother. You had a bond with him, right? It's rare but not impossible. Especially since your mother was a witch."

Tyra chewed the inside of her cheek "We could always tell if the other was hurt or not feeling well. A friend of our mother's said that we're the same soul in two pieces… After we were turned and Nik daggered Finn and I… I – I felt free for the first time in a while. Of course, it didn't last but… Kol helped a lot."

"It's alright," the Doctor murmured, pulling her closer "Well, no. It's not but I'm sure he'd want you to move on."

"He does," she laughed wetly "Back when I died in that church… He was close to kicking my ass."

"He sounds like someone I would have loved to meet," the Doctor smiled, pressing a small kiss to her hair.

Tyra looked up at the bottom of his chin "Henry would have loved you. He was always the one to get in trouble which is surprising since both Kol and I were the troublemakers in the family. Normally, Father never really blamed Henrik for anything. It was mostly Nik or me." A sad smile crossed her face "Henri and Nik were always so close…"

* * *

The next morning, they were standing in front of the school, watching as the children arrived. The Doctor turned to the others "Tyra, Rose and Sarah Jane, you go to the Maths room. Crack open those computers, I need to see the hardware inside. Here, you might need this." He handed the sonic to Tyra, Rose holding out her empty hand "Mickey, surveillance. I want you outside."

"Just stand outside?" Mickey frowned.

Sarah Jane tossed him her keys "Here, take these. You can keep K9 company."

Tyra looked from Mickey to the Doctor to the sonic screwdriver in her hand "Here." She passed it over to Sarah Jane "I'll stay with Mickey."

"What? Why?" the Doctor blinked.

"Because you don't need me in there," Tyra pointed out "Also, after what happened yesterday, I'm going to stay as far away from those things as I possibly can."

The Doctor sighed "Alright. I think you're right…"

"What are you going to do?" Rose questioned.

"It's time I had a word with Mister Finch," the Doctor murmured, staring at the building with dark eyes.

After they were gone, Tyra curled up in the passenger seat, while Mickey was still grumbling "Surveillance. If you ask me, it's just another way of saying 'go sit at the back of the class with the safety scissors and glitter'. Can you tell me again how I'm not the tin dog?"

"I can't tell you what's going on in his mind but to be honest, I think he just wants to get under your skin," Tyra explained "If I'm being perfectly honest I can understand why. The Doctor knows that you can help. Hell, you managed the whole Slitheen thing while we were practically useless… But you do tend to react in an amusing way whenever he annoys you."

Mickey scoffed "Or he just doesn't respect me at all."

"I doubt it," she murmured "If he didn't respect you, he wouldn't even want you along and you forget that he did ask you."

"Whatever," he huffed "So, what now?"

Tyra glanced at the entrance of the school and back at Mickey "No clue."

"Did you know that Rose is jealous of you?" he spoke up after a few moments of silence "Not just about the relationship you have with the Doctor but in general? You're rich, obviously good-looking and smart."

Tyra snorted "And she has a mother who would go through fire for her and you. Me? I have siblings who like to stab each other in the back and parents who want us dead. How exactly does that warrant her jealousy?"

Mickey shrugged "I'm just telling you what I realised. When she found out that you're a vampire and could actually stay with the Doctor forever… Well, I think that's one of the reasons why she feels the need to constantly try and put you down."

"Why? I mean, it's not like I asked for this," Tyra shook her head "I get that she has a crush on the Doctor… She's not very subtle about it but…"

"Don't even try to deny it, Ty," Mickey smiled lightly "I know that you like him."

"As a friend. Yes, he talks to me about things that he doesn't normally talk about but I don't judge him. It would be pretty stupid of me to do so. Especially since I did some pretty bad things… I have no right to be judging anyone else and I think he appreciates that." Tyra scratched her arm "Even if I was interested in the Doctor, I would back off. I don't like incidents where people fight over a person's love. It's stupid and I would rather give them up than have another incident like…"

"Like what?" Mickey frowned.

Tyra let out a shaky breath "Back when I was human… There was this girl in the village. Frankly speaking, she was a whore. Nik and Elijah both fell in love with her. I think that was the moment my family started to fracture. They were fighting all the fucking time and that bitch was playing both of them. The worst thing was that it happened again. About five hundred years later, it happened again. Tatia's Doppelgänger – basically a body double – came into the picture. Nik was trying to kill her and Elijah fell in love with her. The only time I went to see them during that time, their attention was on Katerina and her alone."

"I can understand why you wouldn't want to be in the middle of something like that," Mickey nodded "That's why I was so grateful that you got me to move on. The way that Rose is now… She was always a bit self-centred, I guess. Not that there's anything wrong with it but after some things happened… I don't really know. I think we were never going to last."

"Especially now that she's trying to get with the Doctor, right?" Tyra asked, looking out of the window, only to see one of the students – Kenny banging on the doors "Mickey."

The two hurried out of the car and over to where he was trying to get out "They've taken them all," Kenny called through the doors.

Mickey frowned "What?"

Kenny pulled at the doors frantically "They've taken all the children."

"I can try to kick in the door," Tyra offered "I'm not sure how effective that is with a deadbolt but if not, I'll just break the glass."

Mickey looked from Tyra to the car and back to her "Go ahead. Less damage than anything I could think of."

Tyra snorted before she turned to Kenny "Kenny, I need you to get back a little and turn away from the door. I don't know whether that glass is going to break." As soon as the boy did as she asked, she kicked against the frame of the door with as much strength as she could. The door cracked open and the glass shattered when the door hit the wall behind it.

"Huh," Mickey mumbled "I wanna be able to do that too."

"Come on." Tyra prodded him towards the now open door "Let's get the kids." She stopped by Kenny "I want you to wait out here, Kenny. It's safer, alright?"

"Yes, Miss Mikaelson," the kid nodded, looking back at the school worriedly.

"Don't worry. They're going to be fine," she smiled "We're going to get them out."

"Let's get to it." Mickey grabbed her arm and continued dragging her along.

On their way into the school, they ran into Sarah Jane, Rose and the Doctor at the bottom of the large staircase. Tyra tilted her head "Wanna tell us what's going on?" Her question was answered when a bunch of the remaining Krillitanes flew towards them "Eh, never mind." She ran after the others, keeping between them and the Krillitanes.

As soon as they reached the canteen, the Doctor pulled out his sonic to work on the doors when Finch walked in, glaring "We need the Doctor alive. And I want that girl too. As for the others? You can feast."

The Krillitanes swooped down and while the Doctor tried to fend them off with a chair, the others tried to hide underneath the tables. Tyra caught the arm of one of the creatures when it slashed at her, flinging it towards another. They crashed together at the same time as a third was decimated by a laser beam.

"K9," Sarah Jane breathed in relief.

K9 turned towards them "Suggest you engage running mode, mistress."

"Come on," the Doctor gestured, shooing them through the doors "K9, hold them back."

"Affirmative, Master. Maximum defence mode."

The Doctor nodded, sealing the doors to the physics laboratory behind him "It's the oil," he realised as they caught their breath "Krillitane life forms can't handle the oil. That's it. They've changed their physiology so often, even their own oil is toxic to them." The Doctor pointed at Rose "How much was there in the kitchen?"

"Barrels of it," Rose answered, a look of realization on her face.

Tyra moved back when the Krillitanes started battering on the door "Okay," the Doctor hurried "We need to get to the kitchens… Mickey –"

"What now?" he grumbled "Hold the coats?"

"Get all the children unplugged and out of the school," the Doctor continued, ignoring Mickey's tone "Now then, bats, bats, bats. How do we fight bats?"

Tyra grabbed Mickey's arm, hitting the fire alarm on the way to the doors "Let's do this." The noise was almost making her ears bleed but she could manage. Mickey and Tyra made their way to the first classroom, while the others ran past them towards the kitchens.

"Okay, listen, everyone," Mickey called out, looking at the children in the room "We've got to get out of here."

Tyra put her hand on his arm, shaking her head "It's not going to work. Look at them… It's like they're in a trance."

Mickey blinked, waving his hand in front of their faces. He sighed and looked around. There on one of the walls was a single switch. Mickey quickly hit it, causing all of the screens to go blank "Everyone get out. Now!" The children got up, running outside "Come on, move. Let's go. Let's go!"

They herded all the children out as quickly as they could. There was no saying what the Doctor was planning to do with the oil but one thing was certain… It was going to be big.

Mickey clapped his hands "Come on, guys. Let's go, let's go," he shouted over the sound of the fire alarm "Run."

* * *

Outside, Mickey and Tyra were joined by the Doctor, Rose and a down-trodden Sarah Jane "What happened?" Tyra asked quietly.

"K9," she breathed, staring at the school with wide eyes. Tyra turned away from the building when the whole school blew up. Her hands raised to her eyes as she groaned in pain. Every time. Why did she always have to stand this close to noises?

"Did you have something to do with it?" Melissa asked Kenny.

Kenny blushed and glanced around the crowd. When he caught Tyra's eyes, she gave him a thumbs up and a small nod "Yeah, I did."

"Oh, my God," Melissa gasped "Kenny blew up the school. It was Kenny." The other kids all started cheering, clapping Kenny on the shoulder. A few even lifted him onto their shoulder, chanting his name.

The Doctor came to stand next to Tyra and Sarah Jane "I'm sorry," he murmured quietly, the guilt in his voice obvious.

"It's alright," Sarah Jane waved off, sounding everything but alright "He was just a daft metal dog. It's fine, really." With that, she burst into tears. The Doctor pulled her into his arms, running his hand up and down her back.

As the Doctor started whispering to his former Companion, Tyra walked over to stand with Mickey and Rose. Rose was still glaring at Sarah Jane before turning to Tyra "Hey… Can I – Can I talk to you for a moment?" With a quick glance at Mickey, she added "Alone."

"Er…" Tyra blinked, exchanging a quick look with Mickey "I guess."

"Great. Come on," she exclaimed, pulling Tyra towards where the Tardis had relocated. Once they were out of earshot, Rose slowed a little, losing some of her excitement "I want you to turn me into a vampire."

Tyra froze. She couldn't have heard that right… Could she? "I'm sorry. What?"

"I want to be a vampire," Rose repeated, her expression turning into one of annoyance "I don't want to leave the Doctor and that's my chance to stay with him forever."

Tyra let out an incredulous laugh "Rose, I think you don't really understand what you're asking. There's no way in hell I'm going to turn you into a vampire.

"Why?" Rose demanded.

"You might think that living forever is glamorous but you would have to drink blood. Human blood," Tyra pointed out, trying to actually make the other girl see that it wasn't worth giving up her humanity. She didn't hate Rose, not really but there was no way she wanted to spend forever with that girl around "Being a vampire is a curse. You might be ready to throw your family out of the window but do you really want to do that to your own mother? You could kill her."

Rose shrugged "If you can control it then it shouldn't be too hard."

"Are you joking?" Tyra gaped "I'm over a thousand years old. Do you think I…" She shook her head as the Doctor walked up to them "You know what? I'm done with this discussion. I'm not going to do that. Hell, that would make me responsible for you and that is the last thing I want. Especially with how you've been acting towards me recently. You think this will solve everything? Well, it won't." With that, she stalked the rest of the way towards the Tardis and unlocked the door. The fact that Rose thought it would help matters if she was turned was laughable. It also proved that she really didn't care about Tyra. Maybe she never really had.

* * *

The Doctor smiled as Sarah Jane walked up to him in Belle Vue Park "Cup of tea?" he asked, gesturing to the doors.

Sarah Jane followed him inside, immediately looking around the changed interior "You've redecorated," she murmured.

"Do you like it?" the Doctor asked, letting his gaze wander through the console room. Rose and Mickey were there but Tyra was still missing. He had sent Mickey after her earlier after overhearing the end of her and Rose's discussion but it seems the boy hadn't found her.

Sarah Jane nodded absentmindedly "Oh, I – I do. Yeah. I preferred it as it was but er, yeah. It'll do."

"I love it," Rose exclaimed, patting one of the corals.

"Right," Sarah Jane shrugged "Where's Tyra?"

The Doctor scratched his head "She disappears sometimes. Mickey, did you find her?"

"Nope," he shook his head and shrugged "Sorry. But I guess she wants to be alone."

"Oh, alright, then." The Doctor hesitated for a moment "Er, we're about to head off but you could… come with us?"

Sarah Jane shook her head immediately "No." She sent him an apologetic look "I can't do this anymore. Besides, I've got a much bigger adventure ahead. Time I stopped waiting for you and found a life of my own."

"Can I come?" Mickey asked, causing Sarah Jane to shoot him a confused look "No, not with you. I mean with you." He glanced at the Doctor "Because I'm not the tin dog and I want to see what's out there."

Sarah Jane could see the Doctor's slight hesitation, trying to figure out why "Oh, go on, Doctor," she urged "Sarah Jane Smith and Mickey Smith. You need a Smith on board."

"Okay, then," the Doctor nodded.

Mickey looked at Rose whose smile had dropped and frowned "Rose, is that okay?"

"No, great," she forced out "Why not?"

"Tyra would be happy," Mickey muttered to himself, making his way around the console.

Sarah Jane shifted at the now awkward tension "Well, I'd better go. Doctor, can I talk to you for a moment?" She looked at Rose for a moment "Alone?"

"Er, sure," the Doctor nodded and followed her outside. That actually played right into his hands since he had something for her.

"It's daft," Sarah Jane started as soon as the door closed behind the Doctor "But I haven't ever thanked you for that time. And like I said, I wouldn't have missed it for the world."

The Doctor smiled softly "Something to tell the grandkids."

"Oh, I think it'll be someone else's grandkids now," Sarah Jane told him.

"Right. Yes, sorry," the Doctor winced "I didn't get a chance to ask. You haven't? There hasn't been anyone? You know."

Sarah Jane sighed "Well, there was this one guy. I travelled with him for a while but he was a tough act to follow." She paused for a moment "What I actually wanted to talk to you about though…"

"What is it?" the Doctor frowned "Are you alright?"

Sarah Jane nodded "It's nothing to do with me but… Have you noticed the way Rose is acting towards Tyra?"

"Ah," the Doctor mumbled, running a hand through his hair "Yeah. I noticed…"

"I thought so but…" Sarah Jane bit her lip "You should do something about it soon. I might not know Tyra but she doesn't seem like the person to take things lying down for too long. Especially not the way Rose is acting."

The Doctor nodded a little "I'll talk to them."

"I don't think that Tyra will be much of a problem. Her and Mickey are really close. Have they known each other for long?"

"Not that I know of," the Doctor replied "I mean, they kept in contact, I think but there wasn't any more than that."

"Take care of them," Sarah Jane told him.

The Doctor inclined his head "Oh, I plan to."

Sarah Jane nodded, having said her part "Goodbye, Doctor."

"This is not goodbye," he argued lowly.

"Do say it," Sarah Jane pleaded "Please. This time… Say it."

The Doctor sighed "Goodbye, my Sarah Jane." He lifted her off her feet for a moment before setting her back down "I'm going to miss you."

"Well, maybe we'll see each other again someday," Sarah Jane shot back "But until then…"

"Goodbye." The Doctor went back inside the Tardis.


	6. The Girl in the Fireplace

**I give up, guys. I wanted to have to Rewrite up to date with the original version by Christmas or the New Year at the latest. I'm so sorry about this. But I think that I'm changing enough for it to still be interesting? **

**I have hopes of getting in done by summer with the rate I'm going. Maybe earlier if I'm really lucky.**

**Enjoy,**

**Nick**

"Hey," Mickey greeted quietly, sitting down next to Tyra. She was currently curled up by the Tardis doors, looking out into space. As far as she was aware, Rose was still sleeping and the Doctor was around somewhere, either breaking something or reading in the library.

Tyra turned her head to the side, looking at Mickey "Hey. What are you doing up?"

"Couldn't sleep," he shrugged "I'm just… I'm finally here. Maybe now…"

"Mickey," Tyra sighed, shifting to angle her body towards him. He didn't even have to say anything else because it was obvious what he was thinking "I can tell you this. You don't need Rose. Don't throw away all this." She gestured out into the stillness of the universe "Just because you think you can get her back. Enjoy being here, enjoy seeing what the world has, had and will have to offer."

Mickey blinked before a teasing grin spread across his face "Sometimes I actually forget how old you are. It's only philosophical stuff like this that makes it obvious."

"Why thank you," Tyra snorted "But I'm serious. You are so much better than this. I've seen it again and again."

"The Doctor didn't," he pointed out.

Tyra leaned her head against his shoulder as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She glanced back to see the Doctor leaning against the doorway, watching them quietly "Oh, he did. Trust me. Even he couldn't be that much of an idiot. He just enjoys messing with you."

"But why?"

"My brothers are the same way," Tyra explained "They bicker like there's no tomorrow – or at least Kol does and Nik and Bex join in but at the end of the say, we're still family. We go to the end of the world to protect each other. Always and Forever, Mickey."

Mickey frowned "But you said that you haven't spoken to your siblings in a while."

"Even though I ran because of what Nik and Elijah did to me and the others… If I find out that any of them were in serious trouble, I would drop everything. I have people keeping an eye on them at all times." She paused for a moment, playing with the hem of her shirt "After a thousand years it's hard to care sometimes but the bond between my siblings and I… It's something special. There are ups and downs but every family has those. Our fights are just a bit more… bloody."

"How many siblings do you have again?"

Tyra shifted, leaning her head back, resting it against the wooden doorframe "Five. Four brothers and a sister."

"That is a lot. I'm a little jealous of you for having siblings," the boy admitted with a small grin.

Tyra snorted "Don't be. Siblings are a menace. I don't know how it is to have younger siblings but having older ones is a pain. You can never do stuff without at least one of them trying to get into your business. And the number of times any of my brothers stopped men from even looking at me or my sister… It was funny on occasion but other times. Well, having them run off everyone you're interested in is…"

"Sad," Mickey murmured "That means that you never found your happy end."

"What is that exactly?" Tyra laughed with a shake of her head "Vampires don't get happy endings… It all ends in pain and suffering and blood."

It was then that she heard clothes ruffling behind her "I think you're wrong," the Doctor pointed out quietly as he moved over to join Mickey and her by the doors "You just have to believe that you'll find the person you're meant to be with eventually."

Tyra scoffed and rolled her eyes "You're one to talk."

"I may not be the prime example," the Doctor grimaced, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly "But I'm not saying that there's not a happy end out there for everyone. If it were easy to find, what would make it special, hm?"

"You're so cheesy," Tyra snorted, a grin stealing its way onto her face "What? You expecting a damsel to save from an evil dragon?"

The Doctor shrugged "I'm sure you'd make a good damsel in distress."

Tyra shook her head with a pout "I think you're confusing me with Rose there. I can get out of most situations by myself, thank you very much."

"Oh yeah?" the Doctor teased.

Mickey started laughing at them "You two are too cute."

"Anyway," Tyra drawled, linking her arm with Mickey's "This guy here seems to think he's a tin dog. Anything to say about that, Doc?"

"Ty…"

She shook her head and glared at the Doctor warningly "Nope. I'm not going to leave you thinking that you're not important, Mick."

"She's right," the Doctor admitted slowly "I'm not going to say it often but you're brilliant in your own right."

Mickey blinked at the Doctor in shock and turned to Tyra "How did you do that?" he breathed reverently "Please, tell me your secrets."

"I'm awesome that way," Tyra grinned "That and it was long overdue. I hate how you're always being shoved aside… It's not something that I would want my best friend to feel."

"I thought I was your best friend," the Doctor pouted.

Tyra patted his shoulder in mock comfort "You're my bestest friend who takes me to see the universe."

"I'll take it," the Doctor agreed with a hurried nod "Even if that wasn't a word."

"Just like 'the Doctor' isn't a name, right?" she questioned.

Mickey shook his head at them. They were so into each other "Hey, Ty?" he spoke up, drawing her attention to him "Can you bring me back to my room? I think I should at least try to sleep again and I have no clue how to get back."

Tyra tilted her head at him and nodded "Sure. Sleep is good."

As soon as they were out of the console room and Mickey was sure that the Doctor couldn't hear them anymore, he turned to Tyra "You two really get along great, don't you?"

"Yeah," she smiled lightly "I mean, we've been getting along for ages but since he regenerated… I don't know. He's more open now, I guess."

Mickey nodded "Hey, why did Rose want to talk to you?"

Tyra glanced at her feet and shook her head "It doesn't matter."

"It clearly annoyed you enough to disappear," he pointed out "Sarah Jane wanted to say goodbye but no one could find you."

"Rose asked me to turn her so she could stay with the Doctor forever," Tyra muttered, not willing to let the conversation go on for much longer.

Mickey froze "She did what?"

"You heard me."

"I take it you said no," he sighed, running a hand over his head.

Tyra scoffed "Of course, I said no. She might think it's a good solution but that comes from the girl who has been calling me a monster ever since she found out what I was."

"I get it, I really do," Mickey nodded "And I'm sure as hell not telling you to turn her."

"Here's your room," Tyra pointed to the door "Go to bed, Mickey."

* * *

The Doctor looked up when Tyra entered the console room "Ty? Can I talk to you for…"

He was cut off by Mickey and Rose coming in. Mickey looked over at him curiously "Where are we going?"

"What did you want to talk about?" Tyra asked quietly.

The Doctor just shook his head. He would talk to her about her talk with Rose later on. It didn't make as much of a difference putting it off for another few hours "Later." He grinned at Mickey "Wait and see. I've put the Tardis on random."

"So you don't know either?" Mickey asked before punching the air excitedly. He rushed towards the doors "Sweet." Tyra followed Mickey and Rose out of the Tardis. She was trying to suppress her grin at Mickey's enthusiasm "It's a spaceship," he cheered "Brilliant. I got a spaceship on my first go."

"It looks kind of abandoned," Rose pointed out "Anyone on board?"

Tyra was about to step to the Doctor's side when she tripped over a piece of equipment that was lying on the ground. She straightened up, glaring at the thing. So much for being graceful.

"Nah, nothing here," the Doctor waved off "Well, nothing dangerous. Well, not that dangerous. You know what, I'll just have a quick scan in case there's anything dangerous."

"So, what's the date? How far have we gone?" Rose questioned.

The Doctor hummed "About three thousand years into the future, give or take." He found a light switch on one of the consoles, causing part of the ceiling to slide away, revealing the stars outside "Fifty-first century. Diagmar Cluster. You're a long way from home, Mickey. Two and a half galaxies."

Tyra nudged Mickey lightly "Mickey, meet space. Your journey's only just begun."

"It's so realistic," Mickey gushed.

"That would be because it is real," Tyra pointed out.

The Doctor looked around a little "Dear me, had some cowboys in here. Got a ton of repair work going on. Now, that's odd. Look at that." He ran his hand over some displays "All the warp engines are going. Full capacity. There's enough power running through this ship to punch a hole in the universe but we're not moving… So where's all that power going?"

"Where did all the crew go?" Rose frowned.

"Good question," the Doctor pointed out "No life readings on board."

It was then that a smell reached Tyra's nose. Faint at first but slowly getting stronger. She shifted, looking down the corridor "Doctor?"

"Well," Rose cut her off, her voice holding a sarcastic tone "We're in deep space. They didn't just nip out for a quick fag."

"Doctor? That smell," Tyra murmured "It smells like…"

Mickey inhaled deeply "Sunday roast, definitely."

"It smells like cooking flesh," Tyra corrected quietly "Human flesh and blood."

The Doctor grabbed her shoulders "Are you sure?"

"I should think so, yes," the girl shrugged.

"Well, then," the Doctor looked down "Let's go and find out what's happening." He used the console to open a door behind them. Inside the room, the far wall was panelled and contained a blazing fire in an ornate fireplace that definitely didn't belong. It reminded Tyra of the castle Klaus owned in France. It was a chateau that was relatively small for something Niklaus owned but she loved staying there and had gone back more than once "There's something you don't see in your average spaceship. Eighteenth-century. French. Nice mantle." The Doctor knocked against it "Not a hologram. It's not even a reproduction. This is actually an eighteenth-century French fireplace." He crouched down, looking into the flames "Double-sided. There's another room through there."

Rose peaked out of a nearby porthole "There can't be. That's the outer hull of the ship. Look." Mickey went to join her, blinking at the view in amazement.

"Hello," the Doctor greeted, surprised as a little girl appeared on the other side of the fireplace.

The girl blinked with wide eyes "Hello?"

"What's your name?" the Doctor asked.

"Reinette." Tyra stiffened in surprise. Reinette? As in Reinette Poisson? That would make this the early… eighteenth century. Paris, most likely.

The Doctor smiled "Reinette, that's a lovely name. Can you tell me where you are at the moment, Reinette?"

"In my bedroom," Reinette pointed out. Tyra grinned behind the Doctor's back at her 'duh' tone.

"And where is your bedroom? Where do you live, Reinette?"

Tyra coughed a little and crouched down next to the Doctor "Paris." She nodded at the young child with a little smile "Hello, Reinette."

"She's right," Reinette murmured, smiling a small, nervous smile.

"Paris, right," the Doctor hummed.

Reinette shifted, trying to get more comfortable on the ground "Monsieur, Mademoiselle, what are you doing in my fireplace?"

"Oh, just a routine fire check," the Doctor lied… badly. He lied badly "Can you tell me what year it is?"

"Of course I can," Reinette huffed, sounding insulted "Seventeen hundred and twenty-seven."

The Doctor grinned "Right, lovely. One of my favourites. August is rubbish though… Stay indoors. Okay, that's all for now. Thanks for the help. Hope you enjoy the rest of the fire. Night, night."

"Goodnight, Monsieur, Mademoiselle," Reinette waved.

As soon as she was gone, Mickey stepped up to the two on the ground "You said it was the fifty-first century," he accused, staring at the Doctor.

"And outside it probably is," Tyra shrugged, leaning back against the wall of the spaceship comfortably.

The Doctor nodded, turning to look at Mickey "I also said this ship was generating enough power to punch a hole in the universe. I think we just found the hole… Must be a spatio-temporal hyperlink."

"What's that?"

"No idea," the Doctor grimaced sheepishly "Just made it up. Didn't want to say magic door."

Tyra coughed in amusement. From what she knew about the Doctor he didn't believe that magic was… well, magic. According to him, even magic was science. Tyra assumed that he knew about witches and werewolves as well since he had known about vampires before she told him "And on the other side of the magic door is 1727 France?"

"Well," the Doctor shrugged "She was speaking French. Right period French, too."

Mickey let out a strangled noise "She was speaking English, I heard her."

"That's the Tardis," Rose cut in "Translated for you."

"Even French?"

Tyra nodded "Even French," she patted his shoulder "Although… I heard French. Is that because I can speak it or because the Tardis likes to mess with me?"

The Doctor let out a laugh "She only translates what you don't understand… And I think she actually likes you more than me."

"Handy," Tyra hummed.

"Gotcha," the Doctor called out. He pressed a hidden button on the fireplace that caused it to rotate with him on it.

Rose ran forward, trying to get to him before he disappeared "Doctor."

Tyra narrowed her eyes and tilted her head to the side, trying to listen in on what was going on behind the fireplace. The voices were just quiet enough that she had to concentrate on hearing anything "_It's okay,_" the Doctor whispered gently "_Don't scream. It's me. It's the fireplace man. Look. We were talking just a moment ago. I was in your fireplace._"

Reinette's voice was faint and more than a little incredulous when she answered "_Monsieur, that was weeks ago. That was months._"

"What's going on?" Rose demanded, pacing in front of the mantle angrily. She had run her hands over the fireplace, trying to follow the Doctor without success.

"Shh," Tyra shushed, trying to concentrate on the events that were happening beyond the fireplace in eighteenth-century France.

"_Really?_" the Doctor frowned in surprise "_Must be a loose connection. Need to get a man in._"

"_Who are you? And what are you doing here?_" Reinette asked.

Tyra twitched when the irritating ticking noise she had been trying to ignore got louder "_Okay, that's scary,_" the Doctor muttered, sounding as if he was standing closer to the fireplace.

"_You're scared of a broken clock?_" Reinette scoffed lightly.

The Doctor nodded seriously "_Just a bit scared, yeah. Just a little tiny bit. Because, you see, if this clock's broken – and it's the only clock in the room, then what's that?_" He paused, listening to the mysterious ticking noise "_Because, you see, that's not a clock. You can tell by the resonance. Too big. Six feet, I'd say. The size of a man._"

When Reinette spoke next, her voice was a faint whisper. She sat frozen on her bed, looking at the Doctor with fear in her eyes "_What is it?_"

"What's going on?" Rose demanded, glaring at Tyra. She had tried listening to what was going on but didn't hear anything "What's happening. Why is the Doctor still over there?"

Mickey looked at Tyra in awe. He – like Rose – had tried to eavesdrop on the Doctor and Reinette to no avail "You can actually hear what's going on over there?"

"Yes," Tyra nodded "He's with Reinette. Something is going on. Now, hush."

"_Now, let's think,_" the Doctor mused out loud "_If you were a thing that ticked and you were hiding in someone's bedroom, first thing you do, break the clock. No one notices the sound of one clock ticking, but two? You might start to wonder if you're really alone._"

Tyra raised her hand to her face and groaned "Seriously, Doc? Way to make her less afraid."

"_Stay on the bed,"_ he ordered "_Right in the middle. Don't put your hands or feet over the edge._" He knelt on the ground, sonicking underneath the bed before something shot forward, knocking his screwdriver to the side. The Doctor shot up "_Reinette,_" he breathed, a mixture of wonder and shock colouring his voice "_Don't look round. You, stay exactly where you are. Hold still, let me look… You've been scanning her brain. What, you've crossed two galaxies and thousands of years just to scan a child's brain? What could there be in a little girl's mind worth blowing a hole in the universe?_"

"_I don't understand,_" Reinette whispered, her voice shaking "_It wants me?_" She turned around, looking at the tall figure, almost flinching at the sight of the mask "_You want me?_"

"_Not yet,_" the robotic voice of the figure droned "_You are incomplete._"

Tyra frowned to herself "Incomplete?"

"_Incomplete?_" the Doctor unknowingly parroted "_What's that mean, incomplete? You can answer her, you can answer me. What do you mean, incomplete?_"

"_Monsieur, be careful,_" Reinette cried out.

The Doctor retreated a few steps after dodging the first attack from the Droid, getting closer to the mantle again "_Just a nightmare, Reinette, don't worry about it. Everyone has nightmares… Even monsters from under the bed have nightmares, don't you, monster?_"

The Droid lashed out with a knife, lodging it in the wood of the mantle when Reinette spoke up again "_What do monsters have nightmares about?_"

"_Me._"

Tyra quickly pulled Rose away from the fireplace as the Doctor activated the mechanism again, causing him and the Droid to appear on our side.

"Doctor," Rose exclaimed in shock.

The Doctor grabbed a fire extinguisher from a nearby rack and fired the content over the android. Mickey whistled when it seized up "Excellent," he laughed "Ice gun."

"Fire extinguisher," the Doctor corrected, throwing it to Mickey.

Rose studied the android closely "Where did that thing come from?"

"Here."

Mickey glanced at the clothes while Tyra walked around it, studying the intricate design of the period clothing "So, why is it dressed like that?" Mickey questioned.

"Field trip to France," the Doctor shrugged "Some kind of basic camouflage protocol. Nice needlework, shame about the face." He removed the mask to reveal clockwork inside the head "Oh, you are beautiful. No, really, you are. You're gorgeous. Look at that… Space-age clockwork. I love it. I've got chills," he rambled "Listen, seriously, I mean this from the hearts and – by the way – count those. It would be a crime, it would be an act of vandalism to disassemble you. But that won't stop me." At that moment, the android lurched and beamed away, causing the Doctor to curse "Short-range teleport. Can't have gone dar. Could still be on board."

Rose tilted her head "What is it?"

The Doctor jabbed his finger at her and then swung around to Mickey and Tyra "Don't go looking for it."

"Where are you going?" Rose demanded.

"Back in a sec," the Doctor grinned, using the fireplace again.

Tyra couldn't help the grin that stole its way onto her face when she heard the Doctor talking to an older Reinette.

Rose snapped her fingers in front of Tyra's face in annoyance. She really hated that she had no idea what the Doctor was doing "What's going on?"

"Hm?" Tyra blinked, slapping Rose's hand away from her face "Oh, a woman is flirting with the Doctor. Well, technically Reinette is flirting with the Doctor."

Mickey raised his eyebrow "As in child Reinette?"

"No. She's older now. Well on her way of being Madame de Pompadour," Tyra explained.

Rose glared at the fireplace with a huff and hefted one of the other fire extinguishers up, holding it like a big gun. Mickey reached out his hand to her "He said not to look for it."

"I don't care," Rose snapped, storming off.

Tyra exchanged an exasperated look with Mickey and hurried after her "Rose. I really think you should stay here."

"Why should I?"

"Because those things could be dangerous," Tyra pointed out "We know nothing about them. Plus, the Doctor doesn't like it when we wander off."

Rose stopped in her tracks and just when Tyra thought Rose would listen to her, she pushed her hands out, catching her in the chest "Stop thinking that you know more about the Doctor than I do. You're just a selfish bitch."

"Why exactly am I selfish?" Tyra question, trying her hardest to remain calm "Because I won't turn you? Because the Doctor talks to me about his past? Pray tell me, Rose."

"You just want the Doctor for yourself," she hissed, glaring angrily "That's why you don't want me to be a vampire, right?"

Tyra groaned in exasperation "If you so desperately want to be a vampire then go and find yourself another one. I am not going to turn you because of some misguided attempt at giving the Doctor forever. Also, he's my friend. That's all and nothing else," she pointed out.

"Then at least tell me where I can find another vampire," Rose demanded.

"Just… stop, alright?" Tyra sighed tiredly "Turning into a vampire isn't going to make you feel any better. Just… Do yourself a favour and leave it alone."

With those words, Tyra whirled around, walking back to where the Tardis was waiting. She was so done with Rose and her incessant nagging. First, Rose had called her a monster every time and now she wanted to be a vampire herself? Tyra had known that Rose had a crush on the Doctor but throwing away her life for that? It was the wrong choice for her. Despite Rose's behaviour, Tyra actually respected Jack and there was no way she would cause the older woman to lose her daughter. The way Tyra had gotten to know Rose, the other girl would definitely have problems controlling her bloodlust should she ever be turned. There was also the sire bond that Tyra really didn't like dealing with. It was the reason why she rarely turned people herself. Sure, she sometimes took baby vampires – like Damon – under her wing but the number of people she turned was very low in numbers.

* * *

Several hours later, Tyra found the Doctor in the Chinese garden. He was curled up in the pavilion, staring at the paper in his hands. She knelt down next to him, close enough for their shoulders to brush "Are you alright?"

"No," he murmured, leaning his head against Tyra's shoulder "I wanted to take her to see the stars…"

"Who?" Tyra frowned "Reinette?" He nodded, going back to staring at the letter "May I?"

The Doctor handed it over and Tyra looked down, wrapping her other arm around his shoulders.

'_My dear Doctor. The path has never seemed more slow, and yet I fear I am nearing its end. Reason tells me that you and I are unlikely to meet again, but I think I shall not listen to reason. I have seen the world inside your head, and know that all things are possible. Hurry though, my love. My days grow shorter now, and I am so very weak. God speed, my lonely angel._'

"I'm so sorry," she whispered into his hair, resting her cheek on top of his head "Losing someone is never a pleasant experience."

The Doctor shifted, curling into Tyra's side some more "Can you tell me a story? I – I just want to focus on something else right now."

"Sure," Tyra shrugged "What kind of story do you want to hear?"

"Tell me how you met Queen Victoria again," he demanded, looking up at her with a puppy dog expression on her face.

A smile stole its way across Tyra's face and she laughed lightly "Didn't I tell you that twice already?"

"So?" he huffed "I like it. Please?"

"Alright, then," she murmured and launched into the story.

When she was done, the Doctor had his arm wrapped around her shoulders. Tyra snuggled into his side and looked up when he started talking "Your siblings are idiots. How they could treat you like that, I don't know."

"They're not that bad," Tyra admitted "I really miss them but back then… I didn't like them very much. Except for Kol. Kol was my favourite."

The Doctor sighed "I really do want to meet him… From the way you talk about him, he would be worth looking for."

"Yeah," she grimaced "Better not. Meeting Kol will probably be more than a little chaotic. Although… Fun follows him around."

The Doctor snorted "I don't even have to ask what kind of fun you're talking about."

"That obvious, is it?" she laughed, burying her head back into his shoulder as they fell into a comfortable silence.

"Sometimes it's hard to see the good things in life," the Doctor sighed.

Tyra nodded sadly "But when you do see them… They're worth it. They're so worth it." She pulled back a little "Will you tell me something about your childhood? Only if you're up for it, though."

"If you tell me more about your parents," the Doctor bargained "From what I found out before, I know they're not the best people but… I feel like I need to know more. Even if I can't understand how they would treat you like that."

Tyra bit her lip, hesitating for a moment. Talking about her siblings was well and good but she hated mentioning her parents. Just thinking about them made her think about everything they did. It was their fault that their family broke apart… Specifically, Mikael's fault. Had he not hunted them down… "Alright," she agreed eventually "If you tell me about your childhood, I'll tell you more about my parents."

The Doctor sat up, his eyes losing some of the sadness "Deal." He paused for a moment, thinking "Where to start… I had a friend growing up. We were the best of friends for the longest time. Koschei and I – I still remember how we ran through the fields. Before we started at the Academy everything was alright. But… as initiation, we had to look into the Untempered Schism, a hole in the Time Vortex." He explained how things had changed after that, going through the Academy and how he eventually ran away from Gallifrey after stealing a fault Tardis.

"So… Koschei took the name 'the Master'? Like you called yourself 'the Doctor'?" Tyra questioned with a small frown on her face. The fact that they got to choose their names was so different from everything she knew but it was a working system as well. At least, they got to choose the name they were going to be stuck with.

"Yes. The day you graduate, you get to choose the name you want to be known by," the Doctor nodded.

Tyra hummed "That sounds pretty cool."

"To you, it might as well be. We basically have our names – the one that only you, your mother and your spouse know, the name you use during the Academy and the name you choose for yourself."

"Did you ever tell anyone your real name?" Tyra questioned "I mean, you were married, right?"

The Doctor shook his head "Yeah, I was married and my wife wanted us to do the name-sharing ceremony but… I don't know. It felt wrong."

"Well, maybe you'll still find someone?" Tyra offered "After all, the universe is big enough."

"Hm," the Doctor shrugged "I'm not so sure about that." He shook his head "Anyway, enough about me. It's your turn again."

Tyra closed her eyes, leaning her head back against the wooden structure. She liked this place… It calmed her and was just amazing "I told you a little about my parents already. My mother was – Well, she liked to pretend to care. I'm honestly not sure how much of that was an act because whenever Mikael started beating Nik, Kol or me… She looked away. She never did anything to help us and after Henrik… Having your own parents kill you…" Tyra shook her head "She also hurt Nik. I think I told you about Niklaus being my half-brother before, right? His father was a werewolf – the Alpha of the village."

"Werewolves are…" the Doctor trailed off, not knowing what he was going to say "Never mind. Continue."

"Is there different kinds of werewolves too?" Tyra questioned "I mean, I saw that one in Scotland but… Are there others as well?"


	7. Rise of the Cybermen

"And that weird munchkin lady with the big eyes," the Doctor laughed, causing Tyra to roll her eyes. Both the Doctor and Rose had been going on and on about previous adventures for what felt like hours already "Do you remember? The way she looked at you… And then she opens her mouth and fire comes out."

Rose burst into laughed, nodding her head "I thought I was going to get frazzled."

"Yeah. One minute she's standing there and the next minute, roar," the Doctor mimicked.

Mickey looked from the Doctor to Rose and then to Tyra "Yeah… When was that, then? What happened?"

"Trust me, Mickey," Tyra spoke up for the first time, thoroughly annoyed at the two for baiting Mickey "You don't want to know. In fact, I don't want to hear it. The three of us were there. Can you shut up and be done with it?"

"Someone is pissy today," Rose muttered, looking at Tyra with narrowed eyes. She leaned closer to the Doctor, trying to prove a point she had been thinking about a lot.

Tyra snorted at the thought that Rose was trying to make her jealous "Look, Rose. The only purpose this whole thing serves is to make Mickey ask questions because he was the only one not there…"

The Doctor looked at Mickey, seeing him holding down a button "Er, what're you doing that for?"

"Because you told me to," he shot back, slowly getting pissed once he realised that Tyra was right. Both Mickey and the Doctor had been getting along for the past few adventures but Mickey had a feeling that was about to change.

"When was that?" the Doctor frowned in confusion.

Mickey raised an eyebrow "About half an hour ago."

"Er," the Doctor winced "You can let go now."

Tyra clenched her fists "You're impossible," she forced out "Mickey, ignore them. They are just being idiots again. At least this time it won't get them banished."

Mickey perked up "Now that is something I'd love to hear about."

"You would have been banished too," Rose huffed "If you hadn't cosied up to the Queen."

"Are you trying to say that I slept with Queen Victoria?" Tyra tilted her head "Because I can assure you that I did no such thing."

Rose grimaced "No. I'm trying to say that you have an unfair advantage."

"You mean the same advantage the Doctor would have if he wasn't himself and somehow manages to piss off every monarch he comes across."

The Doctor pouted "I'll have you know that I don't piss off every monarch."

"Just most of them then?" Tyra shot back.

"I always know exactly what I'm doing," he mumbled. As if the universe heard him, the time rotor blew up as soon as he finished the sentence.

"What happened?" Rose coughed.

The Doctor ran around the console, staring at the reading in shock "The Time Vortex is gone. That's impossible. It's just gone. Brace yourself! We're going to crash." The Tardis came to a sudden stop, throwing all of them around. Tyra let out a groan when her head hit one of the coral with a strength that could have broken her neck easily "Everyone alright? Tyra? Rose? Mickey?"

"I'm fine," Mickey replied instantly "I'm okay. Sorry. Yeah."

"Tyra?" The Doctor looked over where she had fallen when she didn't reply. She was sitting up, looking vaguely sick for a moment before her face lost the green hue.

She let out another groan, massaging her neck for a moment "I'm okay," she mumbled, pulling herself up with the help of the coral just behind her.

The Doctor swallowed when he looked back to the console "She's dead," he breathed "The Tardis is dead."

Rose moved towards him, placing a hand on his arm "Can't you fix it?"

"There's nothing to fix," he shook his head "She's perished. The last Tardis in the universe. Extinct."

"We can get help, yeah?" Rose asked.

The Doctor shot her a deadpan look "Where from?"

Mickey walked past Tyra and towards the doors "Where are you going?" Tyra asked quietly.

"Well, we've landed," Rose pointed out with a shrug "We've got to be somewhere."

"We fell out of the Vortex… through the void and into nothingness. We're in some sort of no place," the Doctor explained, his voice thick "The silent realm. The lost dimension."

Mickey opened the door "Otherwise known as London," he called back "London, England, Earth… Hold on." He picked up a discarded newspaper "First of February this year. Not exactly far-flung, is it?"

"So this is London?" the Doctor questioned, noticing something off with this whole thing.

Tyra looked over at him before she looked up. She blinked at the sheer amount of Zeppelins in the sky. That definitely wasn't normal.

"Yep," Mickey nodded.

Tyra rolled her eyes at the two of them "Mickey…"

"Your city," the Doctor cut her off, gesturing for her to be quiet.

"That's the one," Mickey agreed.

The Doctor glanced up at the sky for a moment "Just as we left it."

"Bang on."

"And that includes the Zeppelins?" the Doctor asked, pointing upwards.

Mickey's head snapped up and he gaped in surprise "What the hell?"

A massive airship passed overhead "That's beautiful," Rose whispered.

"Okay," Mickey blinked "So it's London with a big international Zeppelin festival."

The Doctor took a deep breath, looking at the others "This is not your world."

"Not our world… How?" Tyra asked, her eyes narrowing.

"The date's the same," Mickey murmured, throwing his arm around Tyra's shoulders "It's parallel, right? Am I right? Like a parallel Earth where they've got Zeppelins. Am I right? I'm right, aren't I?"

The Doctor shrugged "Must be."

"So, a parallel world…?" Rose frowned in confusion.

Mickey rolled his eyes "It's as if you've never seen any Sci-Fi movies ever. Geez… Like an alternative to our world where everything's the same but a little bit different, like… I don't know, traffic lights are blue, Tony Blair never got elected."

"Wait, you're talking about the multiverse theory?" Tyra asked, the pieces clicking together.

It was then that Rose shouldered past Tyra "And he is still alive," she murmured, staring at an advert that had been right behind the vampire. It was for Vitex Lite starring Pete Tyler. Tyra exchanged a look with Mickey, both thinking the same thing. This could only end in disaster "A parallel world and my dad's still alive."

"Don't look at it, Rose," the Doctor warned "Don't even think about it. This is not your world."

"But he's my dad and…" She touched the advert and jumped back when it triggered a short film.

"_Trust me on this,_" Pete said on the screen.

Rose shook her head "Well, that's weird. But he's real."

"_Trust me on this._"

"He's a success," Rose smiled sadly "He was always planning these daft little schemes. Health food, drinks and stuff. Everyone said they were useless. But he did it."

Tyra winced at the words and muttered under her breath "I distinctively remember you saying the same thing before you ripped a hole into Time and Space to save your father… Or was it after?"

"Rose," the Doctor started, his tone serious "If you've ever trusted me then listen to me now. Stop looking at it. Your father's dead. He died when you were six months old. That is not your Pete. That is a Pete. For all we know, he's got his own Jackie, his own Rose. His own daughter who is someone else but not you. You can't see him. Not ever."

"_Trust me on this. Trust me on this. Trust me on this. Trust me on this._" Tyra rubbed at her head, glaring at the stupid advert. It wasn't helping at all. Not that she cared what Rose was going to do. It would without a doubt end in disaster but that was going to be on her. Tyra might have liked Pete. He seemed like a good guy but that didn't mean that she had liked being eaten by a Reaper.

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair "I'm going back to the Tardis, see if there's anything I can do. Mickey, keep an eye on Rose."

Tyra looked from Mickey to the Doctor's retreating back "Do you mind if I…?"

"Go ahead," Mickey nodded "I think he's going to need a friend. I'll just watch Miss Gloomy here."

Tyra jogged to catch up with the Doctor, looking up at him from the corner of her eye "Are you going to be alright?"

"What are you talking about? I'm always alright," he protested weakly.

"Right," Tyra snorted "Just like I'm always okay, right? Don't try to mess with me, Doc. I can see that you're hurting."

The Doctor sighed and tugged at his hair in frustration "It's just… The Tardis is dead. What am I supposed to do now?"

"Don't give up just yet," Tyra shrugged "Who knows… Maybe there's a way?"

He slumped down on the jump seat, burying his face in his hands "I don't think that there's any hope this time around, Ty."

"Well, excuse me," she huffed playfully, nudging his side "Who is the one who told me that there's always hope? Even in the most hopeless of situations."

"This is different though," he murmured.

Tyra raised an eyebrow "How so?"

"It just is."

The Tardis door opened and Mickey stormed in, a pissed off look on his face. Tyra stood up and pressed a hand to his shoulder "What happened?"

"Rose is bloody mental, that's what happened," he snapped before taking a couple of deep breaths "Sorry. She just pissed me off."

Tyra hummed "That seems to be something she is pretty damn good at."

"I told you to keep an eye on her," the Doctor spoke up with a sigh.

Mickey shook his head "She's alright. When I left she was ranting about you not letting her see her father."

"She goes wandering off," the Doctor grumbled "Parallel world… It's like a gingerbread house. All those temptations calling out."

"Oh, dear," she breathed when Mickey's eyes darkened.

Mickey stood up straight, glaring at the Doctor "Oh, so it's just Rose, then? Nothing out there to tempt me? Or Tyra?"

"Mickey," Tyra spoke up soothingly, getting annoyed by their squabbling. It wasn't as if they didn't have enough problems without them making things more difficult "It's fine. Calm down…"

The Doctor cut her off "Well, I don't know," he snapped "I can't worry about everything. If I could just get this thing to…" He kicked the console with as much strength as he could.

"Did that help?" Mickey questioned, tilting his head in amusement. He wasn't really mad at the Doctor. He understood that the Time Lord had other things to worry about at the moment but he hated being pushed to the side. It had happened way too often in the past years and he was starting to get sick of being forgotten or pushed around just because some people thought it was fun.

"Yes," the Doctor nodded.

Mickey's grin grew "Did that hurt?"

"Yes," the Doctor nodded again, rubbing his foot "Ow." He sank down on the jump seat again "Look, I'm sorry that I'm being crabby but this whole thing is messing with me. We're not meant to be here. The Tardis draws its power from the universe but this is the wrong one. It's like diesel in a petrol engine."

"But I've seen it in comics," Mickey pointed out "People go hopping from one alternative world to another. It's easy."

The Doctor shook his head "Not in the real world. It used to be easy. When the Time Lords kept their eye on everything. You could hop between realities and be home in time for tea." His voice turned sad and Tyra couldn't resist drawing him into a hug, her chin resting on top of his hair "Then they died and took it all with them. The walls of reality closed, the worlds were sealed. Everything became that bit less kind."

"Then how did we get here?"

The Doctor shrugged, nuzzling closer to Tyra a little "I don't know. Accident? Should've been impossible. Now we're trapped." He sat up straighter "What's that?"

Tyra turned her head in the direction he was squinting and grinned "Is that what I think it is?"

"What?" Mickey frowned.

"That, there," the Doctor pointed "Is that a reflection? It's a light. Is it?"

Tyra crouched down on the grating and looked down "That is a light," she agreed.

"That's all we need," the Doctor laughed in relief "We've got power. We've got power. Ha!" He gently pulled Tyra away from the grating, kneeling down to get down below the main part of the console "It's alive."

Mickey leaned forward curiously "What is it?"

"It's nothing. It's tiny. One of those insignificant little power cells that no one ever bothers about and it's clinging to life with one little ounce of reality tucked away inside," the Doctor mumbled.

Tyra coughed "Well, not so insignificant now, is it?"

"Is that enough to get us home?" Mickey questioned.

The Doctor hummed "Not yet. I need to charge it up."

"We could go outside and lash it up to the National Grid," Mickey pointed out.

"Wrong sort of energy," the Doctor sighed "It's got to come from our universe."

Tyra tilted her head "Is there anything we have from our universe?"

"There's me." The Doctor cradled the green light in his hands, blowing on it. The light brightened "I just gave away ten years of my life. Worth every second," he shook his head.

Mickey looked at the power cell and started worrying when it went out "It's going out. Is that okay?"

"It's on a recharging cycle," the Doctor explained "It'll loop round, power back up and be ready to take us home on… Oh… Twenty-four hours?"

"So that gives us twenty-four hours on a parallel world?" Mickey clarified, glancing at the door eagerly.

The Doctor's face lit up "Shore leave. As long as we keep our heads down. Easy. No problem."

"No problem?" Tyra repeated "Have you met you? I don't even want to know what kind of trouble we're going to get into in the next twenty-four hours."

"I'm not that bad," the Doctor huffed, walking out of the Tardis doors. They started looking around for Rose, hoping that she hadn't done anything stupid "There you are," the Doctor called when he saw the blonde sitting on a bench by the embankment "You alright? No applause. I fixed it. Twenty-four hours, then we're flying to reality. What is it?"

Rose was staring at the phone in her hands "My phone connected. There's this Cybus Network. It finds your phone… It gave me Internet access."

Tyra pulled out her phone, blinking at the Network provider "I've got it too."

"Rose, whatever it says, this is the wrong world," the Doctor tried.

"I don't exist," Rose burst out, looking up at the others.

The Doctor frowned in confusion "What do you mean?"

"There is no Rose Tyler. I was never born. There's Pete, my dad and Jackie. He still married mum but they never had kids."

"Give me that phone," the Doctor demanded, holding out his hand. His mood had darkened as soon as Rose started talking about this universe's version of her family.

Rose looked at his hand "They're rich. They've got a house and cars and everything they want. But they haven't got me… I've got to see him."

Tyra shifted hesitatingly, not sure whether I really wanted to get involved "Rose, I don't think that's a good idea. Remember what happened last…"

"You're just jealous," she burst out, startling all of us "You're jealous that I have a real family and yours hates you."

"Don't ever talk about my family," Tyra told her lowly. At that moment, she was desperately trying really hard not to snap that insignificant girl's neck "You have no fucking idea what you're talking about. I don't give a damn about what you do or don't do but you're going to get someone killed one of these days."

"Enough," the Doctor hissed "Stop acting like children. Both of you. You can't go to see them, Rose."

She crossed her arms firmly "I just want to see him." Tyra rolled my eyes, stepping back to lean against the railing. Honestly, why did she care again? Rose had been nothing but trouble for her… She should just kill her and be done with it "You said twenty-four hours."

"You can't become their daughter," the Doctor pointed out, slowly losing his temper "That's not the way it worked. Mickey, tell her."

Mickey looked from Rose to Tyra "Twenty-four hours, yeah?" He held out his hand for Tyra to take and went to turn around.

"Where are you going?"

Mickey shrugged "Well, I can do what I want and so can Tyra."

"I've got the address and everything," Rose spoke up, ignoring Mickey completely as she walked in the opposite direction of where Mickey and Tyra were walking.

"Stay where you are," the Doctor called out "All of you. Rose, come back here… Mickey, Tyra, come back here right now."

Rose stopped, turning back with red-rimmed eyes "I just want to see him."

"Yeah," Mickey grumbled under his breath "And we want no part of this."

The Doctor looked at Mickey and Tyra before glancing over his shoulder with a groan "Promise me you'll be careful," he pleaded "I just…"

"It's fine," Mickey shot back through gritted teeth "I'm just a spare part anyway."

Tyra shook her head "It's alright, Doctor. Go and make sure the church incident doesn't happen again."

Mickey blinked at Tyra "The what incident?"

"Rose wanted to see her father's death," Tyra explained as they watched the Doctor's expression "Let's just say it didn't end well. I got eaten by a Reaper and her father still died. Though I have to admit you were an adorable child."

Mickey groaned "Oh, God. I might not remember that particular thing but I was told how I was when I was younger."

"Don't worry," Tyra grinned "You were cute."

The Doctor bit his lip and let out a long breath "Back here in twenty-four hours."

Mickey shook his head, watching the Doctor's retreating back "I shouldn't even be surprised. How can you stand it?"

"Rose tends to mess up," Tyra mumbled "I think even the Doctor is getting a bit annoyed with her sometimes but I could be wrong. It's not like I'm interested in what she does for the most part."

"Why are you always protecting him?" Mickey asked "I mean, he seems to pay so much more attention to Rose than to you."

Tyra shook her head with a smile "Not really. I don't mind. I'm not quite that needy that I need someone to pay attention to me every second of the day." She hesitated for a moment "And maybe I wish that someone would have done the same for me. I don't know… He really isn't that bad. Although he can be a bit oblivious."

They walked past a vacant lot and up to an army roadblock "Are we alright to get past?" Mickey questioned, Tyra's arm around his waist.

"Yeah," the soldiers shrugged "No bother. Curfew doesn't start till ten."

Mickey blinked "There's a curfew?"

"Course there is," the soldier frowned in confusion "Where you been living? Up there with the toffs?" He jerked his head up to the Zeppelins.

"I wish," Mickey laughed before pulling Tyra past the roadblock "See you."

Tyra glanced over her shoulder and then back at Mickey "Where are we going anyway?"

"My gran," he murmured "I want to see if my gran is here."

"She was the one who raised you, didn't she?" Tyra asked. Mickey had told her about it before but she wasn't sure whether she remembered it right.

Mickey hummed and rattled the knocker of a house. Tyra smiled lightly when a voice called from inside "Who's that there?" The door opened, revealing an old Indian woman with a white stick and a pair of ear pods "Who is it? I know you're there. Shame on you, tricking an old lady. I've got nothing worth stealing and don't think I'm going to disappear. You're not going to take me."

Tyra couldn't quite hold back the laugh and nudged Mickey "Oh, I know where you got your attitude from now."

"Hi," Mickey smiled sheepishly, ignoring what Tyra said.

Mickey's parallel gran tilted her head "Is that you?"

"It's me," Mickey replied quietly "I came home."

"Ricky?"

Tyra muffled her snort in Mickey's shoulder. Figures that his name in this universe would be the same name the Doctor was using to annoy him with "It's Mickey," he corrected automatically.

"I know my own grandson's name," the old woman huffed "It's Ricky. Now, come here." They hugged for a long moment.

"Okay," Mickey shrugged "I'm Rickey. Of course, I am. Ricky, that's me." The old woman slapped him "Ow."

She glared in the direction Mickey was standing in "You stupid boy. Where have you been? And who is the girl with you?"

"Ow," Mickey protested "Stop hitting me."

"It's been days and days," the woman murmured, the fight slowly leaving her "I keep hearing all these stories. People disappearing off the streets. There's nothing official on the download but there're all these rumours and – and whispers. I thought that God had disappeared you."

Mickey swallowed, blinking back the tears. He wrapped his arms around Tyra, taking all the comfort that Tyra could give him. Not that she seemed to mind much. She had played teddy bear for the Doctor earlier as well. Actually, it felt nice to be hugged by people she cared about once in a while. It had been way too long "That carpet on the stairs, I told you to get in fixed. You're going to fall and break your neck."

"Well, you get it fixed for me," the old woman pointed out.

Mickey sighed "I should have done way back. I guess I'm kind of useless."

"Now, I never said that," the woman denied.

Tyra rolled her eyes in fond exasperation "Yeah. You try and tell him. I've tried for months now…"

"Who are you then?" Mickey's parallel grandmother asked "Are you Rickey's girlfriend?"

Tyra looked up at Mickey with a smirk that made him pale "Don't you dare, Ty… No."

"We're friends," she told the woman "I – I had a bit of a hard time recently and Mi – Ricky has been helping me through some things."

"How about a nice sit-down and a cup of tea?" the woman offered "We could catch up. Do you have time?"

Mickey looked at Tyra, smiling when she shrugged "For you, I've got all the time in the world."

The old woman snorted "Oh, you say that but it's all talk. It's those new friends of yours. I don't trust them."

"What friends are they?" Mickey inquired.

"Don't pretend you don't know," the woman chided "You've been seeing them. Missus Chan told me. Driving around all helter-skelter in that van? Is your new friend part of your little group as well?"

Tyra raised her eyebrow "What van?" Just as the words left her mouth, she whirled around, seeing a van do a handbrake turn towards them "Oh. Never mind."

"Get inside," the older woman hurried, trying to get a hold of Mickey.

"I've been looking for you everywhere," a blond man hissed, pushing Mickey into the van. He looked at the girl next to Ricky for a moment before grasping her arm, pushing her in as well "Ricky, you were the one who told us you don't contact your family because it puts them in danger."

Mickey looked at the man blankly for a couple of seconds before he nodded "Yeah. Ricky said that. Course I did, just testing."

The blond man leaned forward "I saw them. I taped them. They went round Blackfriars gathering up the homeless like the child catcher. They must have taken four dozen."

Tyra turned her head to look at the woman in the driver's seat "The vans were hired out to a company called International Electromatics. But I did a protocol search. Turns out that's a dummy company established by guess who?"

"Who?" Tyra frowned.

The two looked at the girl for a moment "Cybus Industries."

"Well, now we've got evidence," the man pointed out.

"Bad news is, they've arrested Thin Jimmy. So that just leaves you."

Mickey threw Tyra a helpless look but she just shrugged, equally in confusion. She had no idea what was going on either. Mickey sighed "Leaves me what?"

"The Number One," the blond man pointed out "Top of the list. London's Most Wanted."

"Okay, cool." Mickey froze when the words registered "Say that again?"

Tyra snorted at his expression, ignoring the looks she was getting "God, what the hell have you been doing?"

"You didn't tell her?" the blond asked, causing Mickey to shake his head "Damn. Okay, this is getting somewhat more complicated." The van stopped and they all filtered out "There's a light on. There's someone inside the base. Mrs Moore, we've got visitors."

Tyra nudged Mickey "Doesn't this seem a bit… Scooby-Doo to you?"

"Uh-huh," Mickey nodded, watching as both the man and the woman pulled out guns "With a bit more guns."

"One, two, three, go."

"Now, that's just creepy," Tyra mumbled when she caught sight of the figure inside.

"What the hell are you doing?" Ricky demanded, looking from his friends to the guns.

The blond man frowned "What are you doing there?"

Ricky snorted "What am I doing here? What am I doing there?" The guns turned on Tyra and Mickey. Tyra subtly shifted to stand in front of Mickey, shielding him in case they decided to shoot first, ask questions later "Who are you?"

"Why should we tell you?" Tyra asked, making sure that Mickey stayed behind her "You were the ones who practically kidnapped us."

"Well, he looks like Ricky," the blond man pointed out.

Tyra raised an eyebrow "That doesn't mean anything. You still kidnapped us."

"Ty…" Mickey murmured "It's fine."

When the three made to take a step forward, Tyra crouched down a little "Touch me, I dare you."

"Tyra," Mickey repeated "Just let them check us out. It's not worth the hassle. Plus, didn't you promise the Doctor we'd stay out of trouble?"

Tyra scoffed "I think it's a little too late for that." She looked at him and then at the guns before she groaned "Fine. On your head."

* * *

In barely any time, Mickey was stripped and tied to a chair. Tyra had been ready to protest but stayed quiet at Mickey's look. She couldn't deny that she was sort of wanting to see where things were going. That ended, when they tried to touch her though. Tyra wrapped an arm around the blond – Jake's throat, making sure that her grip was firm but not tight enough to do any lasting harm. She was done with the Scooby-Doo Gang and it showed.

Before she could do anything else, she stiffened, falling to the ground with a hiss "Tie her up. She won't be a problem now," Mrs Moore murmured, holding a stun gun.

"Ty," Mickey called out, straining against his bonds "Leave her alone."

As soon as they were sure that Tyra was secured, Jake scanned Mickey "He's clean. No bugs."

"But this thing is state of the scale," Ricky murmured, walking around his double "He's flesh and blood. How did that happen?"

Mrs Moore shrugged "Well, it could be that Cybus Industries have perfected the science of human cloning… or your father had a bike."

"And your name is Mickey, not Ricky?"

Mickey nodded "Mickey. Dad was Jackson Smith. Used to work at the key cutters in Clifton's Parade. Went to Spain, never came back."

Ricky scowled "But that's my dad. So we're brothers?"

"Be fair," Jake chuckled, sitting down to watch Tyra nervously. One of his hand coming up to rub at his throat "What else could it be?"

"I don't know," Ricky exclaimed, throwing his hands up "But he doesn't just look like me, he is exactly the same. There's something else going on here, Jake."

Mickey looked up at his other self "So, who are you lot?"

"We?" Ricky smirked "We are the Preachers. As in Gospel Truth. You see?" He gestured to his ear "No earplugs. While the rest of the world downloads from Cybus Industries, we have got freedom. You're talking to London's Most Wanted but Target Number One is Lumic and we are going to bring him down."

Mickey looked around in disbelief "From your kitchen?"

"Have you got a problem with that?" Ricky glared.

"No," Mickey replied quickly "It's a good kitchen."

Tyra snorted "It's not. What are you? The freaking Scooby Gang?" She regarded Ricky while subtly unravelling the ropes around her wrists "You even have the van. It's ridiculous."

"You're the one tied up," Ricky pointed out, narrowing his eyes.

"Am I really?" Tyra asked, holding up her hands.

"How did you…?" Jake blinked "Those were…"

Tyra smirked "Better luck next time." She just wanted to get back to the Tardis and forget this ever happened. A part of her started to feel the compulsion to look up her family, just to see whether they were still alive. She was curious because of the thousands of possibilities but not curious enough to endanger anyone by actually meeting them.

Mrs Moore ignored what was going on when the computer pinged "It's an upload from Gemini?"

"Who's Gemini?" Mickey questioned.

"The vans are back," Mrs Moore murmured "They're moving out of Battersea. Looks like Gemini was right. Lumic's finally making a move."

"And we're right behind them," Ricky pointed out "Pack up, we're leaving."

* * *

As soon as they arrived at the location the lorry had been brought to, Ricky and Jake jumped out with Tyra following. The Doctor was somewhere around here. His scent was still hanging in the air "I don't know what they're going," Ricky murmured into his walkie-talkie "But this seems to be the target. Big house, fair bit of money. Now we have got to find a way to get in."

Mrs Moore's voice whispered back "I've identified the address. It belongs to Peter Tyler, the Vitex millionaire."

"Pete Tyler?" Mickey gasped.

Tyra grabbed the device out of Ricky's hand "I'm pretty sure the Doc's still in there, so whatever happens… I'm going in if he doesn't come out with Rose."

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Ty?" Mickey asked worriedly.

"You forget that I'm more durable than I seem," Tyra shot back.

Mrs Moore cleared her throat "He's listed as one of Lumic's henchmen. A traitor to the state."

Mickey made a wounded noise "But… Tyra… We have to…"

Ricky groaned "Now, shut it, duplicate." A ramp was dropped down from the back of the truck "What are they doing?" Tyra's eyes widened when heavy feet marched down the ramp and onto the gravel "What the hell are they?"

"Cybermen," she swallowed "They look like Cybermen. Way more advanced than I have ever seen but… It seems to be them."

Ricky turned to the girl, for the first time not glaring "What are they?"

Tyra shook her head "I don't know much. I never personally saw them. Only what my friend told me… The metal is some kind of battle armour for them. I think he said that they were Human."

"Human?" Jake breathed, his eyes glued to where the Cybermen were marching in.

Tyra tilted her head, trying to hear what was going on inside but she was too far away "Stay here. I'll be back."

"Where are you going?" Ricky hissed, holding onto her arm "You can't go in there."

"Are you worried for little old me?" Tyra teased with a small grin "Don't be. Ask Mickey, he'll be able to explain some things." She crept forward and blurred through a side door without being seen by the metal men.

* * *

"What are they?" Rose asked, her voice shaking "Robots?"

The Doctor shook his head "Worse than that."

"Cybermen, right?" Tyra asked, appearing behind them.

The Doctor whirled around in surprise, looking at Tyra with wide eyes "What are you doing here? Where's Mickey? Are you insane?"

"Do you really think I'd let Mickey come in here?" she frowned "And I can defend myself."

"Who were these people?" an important-looking man demanded.

Tyra leaned over to the Doctor "Who's that guy?"

"The President, apparently."

"Not Prime Minister?" she blinked.

The Doctor shook his head but before he could explain, Rose let out a gasp "They're people?"

"They were," the Doctor mumbled "Until they had their humanity taken away. That's a living brain jammed inside a cybernetic body with a heart of steel… All emotions removed."

"That sounds kind of gross when you say it like that," Tyra snorted, watching the people around them when a scent reached her nose. It smelled familiar – very familiar. Her eyes trailed over the panicking crowds before they reached a small group of people "Doctor… Are they?"

The Doctor wrapped an arm around her shoulders "They seem to be, yes."

"But how can they be alive? Like… Human?" she mumbled, staring at her parallel family with a hint of longing. They were all there… Nik, Elijah, Rebekah and even Henrik. Tyra ripped her eyes away from the scene and bit her lip harshly. There was another blonde with them who seemed to be practically glued to Finn's side. She would have assumed that it was his wife if not for the fact that the woman looked almost exactly like Esther.

Rose rolled her eyes at Tyra's behaviour "Why no emotions?"

The Doctor's arm tightened around Tyra, sighing "Because it hurts."

"I demand to know, Lumic," the President burst out, drawing their attention back to the scene "These people… Who were they?"

"They were homeless," Lumic replied "And wretched and useless until I saved them and elevated them and gave them life eternal. And now I leave you in their capable hands. Goodnight, sir. Goodnight, Mister President."

One of the Cybermen straightened up "We have been upgraded."

"Into what?" the Doctor asked.

"The next level of mankind," it said "We are Human point two. Every citizen will receive a free upgrade. You will become like us."

The President looked at them with sorrow in his eyes "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for what's been done to you but listen to me. This experiment ends tonight."

"Upgrading is compulsory," the Cyberman droned.

"And if I refuse?"

The Doctor shot forward, trying to get the President to step down "Don't."

"What if I refuse?" the man asked, staring at the Cybermen challengingly.

"I'm telling you, don't," the Doctor hissed.

The President raised an eyebrow "What happens if I refuse?"

"Then you are not compatible," the Cyberman replied.

The President snorted "What happens then?"

"You will be deleted." The Cyberman put its hand on the President's neck, electrocuting him. The Doctor grabbed Rose and dragged Tyra along with the grip he still had on her.

All around them the guests were screaming and Tyra could hear her parallel family in the crowd as well. She closed her eyes and inhaled shakily. They weren't her family… They had what she didn't and they weren't her family.

"There's nothing we can do," the Doctor shook his head as soon as they were outside.

Rose fought to get back inside but the Doctor wrapped his arm around her, letting go of Tyra in the process. Tyra barely realised what was going on since she was still staring at the house "My mum's in there," Rose protested.

"She's not your mother," the Doctor grumbled "Come on."

A row of Cybermen stopped them from running across the lawn. They turned back to run around the side of the house where Ricky and Jake were still waiting as Pete Tyler came crashing through the window in front of them "Quick, quick," Rose hurried.

"Pete, is there a way out?" the Doctor asked the man.

Pete nodded "The side gates. Who are you? How do you know so much?"

"You wouldn't believe it in a million year," the Doctor shot back with a grim smile.

More Cybermen cut them off and Tyra tugged on the Doctor's sleeve "This way."

"Who's that?" Rose frowned as two armed figures came running across the lawn in front of the floodlights.

"Get behind me," Ricky demanded, opening fire on the Cybermen.

Tyra put her hand on the gun and pulled in down "Don't, Ricky. Bullets don't work. You're only going to make it worse."

"Oh, my God, look at you," Rose breathed, hugging Ricky "I thought I'd never see you again."

Tyra snorted at Ricky's look and pulled the other girl back "Rose, that's not Mickey."

"Rose," Mickey called out, running up from behind "That's not me… That's like the other one."

The Doctor groaned "Oh, as if things weren't bad enough, there's two Mickeys."

"Trust me," Tyra whispered into his ear "Compared to Ricky, I think you're actually going to like Mickey better."

"But there's more of them," Mickey pointed out, looking at the Cybermen with wide eyes.

Rose looked around in fear "We're surrounded.

"Put the guns down," the Doctor commanded "Bullets won't stop them." When Jake went to shoot some more, Tyra plucked the gun from his hands and threw it down. The Doctor held up his hands "We surrender. Hands up. There's no need to damage us. We're good stock. We volunteer for the upgrade program. Take us to be processed."

One of the Cybermen in front of them started talking "You are rogue elements."

"But we surrender," the Doctor called, a hint of panic entering his voice.

"You are incompatible."

The Doctor stared at the Cybermen "But this is a surrender."

"You will be deleted," it droned.

"But we're surrendering. Listen to me, we surrender."

"You are inferior," the Cybermen replied "Men will be reborn as Cybermen but you will perish under maximum deletion."

The group of Cybermen around them held out their arms, stomping closer to them "Delete. Delete. Delete."


	8. Age of Steel

Tyra looked at the Doctor's back and then at the Cybermen all around then, the screams from the house getting to her. She closed her eyes for a moment, running past the Cybermen and into the building before any of the others could notice. Her eyes darted around, looking around the panicking humans hesitatingly. A familiar scream made her mind flash back to the last time she heard the exact same sound. Tyra shook her head, pushing the memories back.

Over in the corner, boxed in by one of the Cybermen, were her parallel siblings. Tyra bit her lip harshly, thinking about whether she would be able to save them. This whole thing wasn't supposed to happen, so it shouldn't matter whether seven people escaped… Right? Tyra darted forward, grabbing two arms "Come with me," she hissed, shoving them towards the doorway "Go."

"Who are you?" parallel Klaus frowned, eyeing the girl who was standing between his family and the metal man. She seemed familiar but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"There's no time for that," Tyra shook her head "Please, just get out of here."

Elijah looked at the other people who were dying around them "You have to help them too."

"I can't," Tyra murmured "It's too late for them. I'm sorry." She pulled at the two arms she was holding, shoving them towards the only exit that was still free, keeping between them and the Cybermen at all times. Tyra swallowed when her eyes met with someone who was being electrocuted "I'm so sorry."

Outside, the seven Mikaelsons turned to the girl who had saved them "How did you do that?"

"Do what?" she frowned, tilting her head.

"You moved faster than you should have," Finn pointed out "How is that possible?"

Tyra shrugged uncomfortably "Does it matter? Just… Get out of here and stay out of trouble." Before she turned to walk away, she stopped "And lose the ear pods while you're at it."

"Wait," the oldest blonde called out. She was the only person that Tyra didn't know but maybe that was the sibling who was there in her stead. The only thing that she knew was that whoever it was, she looked too much like Esther to be anyone but her daughter "Who are you?"

"My name is Tyra," she told them, running back to where she left the Doctor and the others.

She stepped closer just as the last of the Cybermen got atomised by the golden energy bursting out of the Tardis' power cell the Doctor had taken earlier. Ricky gaped at the non-existent remains of the Cybermen "What the hell was that?"

"We'll have that instead," the Doctor called out "Run."

Mickey froze just as Mrs Moore sounded the van's horn "Wait, where's Tyra?"

"I'm here," she spoke up, walking towards them from where she had been standing.

Jake blinked, pointing from his side to her in confusion "How did you get there?"

"Magic," she joked, wiggling her fingers.

"I've got to go back," Pete mumbled, staring at his home "My wife's in there."

The Doctor caught his arm before she could leave "Anyone inside that house is dead. If you want to help, then don't let her die for nothing." Tyra furrowed her brow, trying to remember whether she had seen parallel Jackie anywhere inside the house. She was sure that she hadn't but then again… She had been more focused on her parallel family "You've got to come with us right now."

"Come on," Mrs Moore called out in annoyance. She looked over her shoulder, rolling her eyes at the group "Get a move on."

Tyra followed Mickey, Ricky and Jake into the van, glancing back at the Doctor and Rose. The former was trying to pull Rose into the car but she didn't move "Rose, she's not your mother," he hissed.

"I know," Rose mumbled.

"Come on."

"Finished chatting?" Mrs Moore mocked, starting up the car when everyone was inside "Never seen a slower getaway in my life."

As soon as they were away from the house, Tyra relaxed a little. Ricky, on the other hand, clenched his teeth and stared at the Doctor distrustfully "What was that thing?"

"Little bit of technology from my home," the Doctor shrugged.

Mickey leaned forward, looking at the power cell curiously "It's stopped glowing. Has it run out?"

"It's on a revitalising loop," the Doctor explained "It'll charge back up in about four hours."

"Right," Ricky groaned "So, we don't have a weapon anymore."

Jake snorted "Yeah, we've got weapons. Might not be one of those metal things but they're good enough for men like him." His head jerked in the direction of Pete.

"Leave him alone," Rose snapped, immediately jumping to parallel Pete's defence "What's he done wrong?"

Tyra groaned quietly, leaning her head against Mickey's shoulder "Here we go again," she mumbled.

"Oh, you know," Jake shrugged, studying the blonde in disdain "Just laid a trap that's wiped out the Government and left Lumic in charge."

Pete's head snapped up "If I was part of all that, do you think I'd leave my wife inside?"

"Maybe your plan went wrong," Ricky shot back "Still gives us the right to execute you, though."

"Talk about executions," the Doctor spoke up "You'll make me your enemy. And take some really good advice. You don't want that."

Ricky raised his eyebrow and turned to look at Tyra who nodded with a shrug, causing him to slump back in his seat "All the same, we have evidence that says Pete Tyler's been working for Lumic since twenty point five."

"Is that true?" Rose asked, looking at her parallel father accusingly.

"Tell them, Mrs M."

Mrs Moore glanced back from the driver's seat before focussing back on the road "We've got a government mole who feeds us information. Lumic's private files, his South American operations, the lot. Secret broadcasts twice a week."

Pete's eyes widened "Broadcasts from Gemini?"

"And how do you know that?" Ricky demanded, glaring at the red-haired man.

"I'm Gemini," Pete pointed out "That's me."

Ricky crossed his arms in disbelief "Yeah, well… You would say that."

Pete rolled his eyes in exasperation "Encrypted wavelength six five seven using binary nine. That's the only reason I was working for Lumic. To get information. I thought I was broadcasting to the Security Services. What do I get? Scooby-Doo and his gang."

Tyra snorted "Right?" she asked him "They even got the van."

Mickey poked her in the side "Not again, Ty… The Preachers know what they're doing. Ricky said…"

"Mickey, they have no idea what they're doing," Tyra told him, patting his shoulder "It's very obvious."

Jake frowned, looking rather insulted "Thank you?"

"You're welcome," Tyra smirked "Notice that you're not denying anything? You're in over your head. It's admirable what you're trying to do but there is only three of you."

"Yeah, yeah," Jake waved off.

Mickey shook his head "But Ricky said that he's London's Most Wanted."

"Yeah, that's not exactly…" Ricky broke off sheepishly.

"Not exactly what?" Mickey questions, his eyes narrowing on his copy.

Ricky shifted "I'm London's Most Wanted for parking tickets." Tyra and the Doctor snorted, while Rose was trying to hide her grin.

Pete groaned out loud and hid his face in his hands "Great."

"Yeah," Ricky tried to defend himself "They were deliberate. I was fighting the system. Park anywhere, that's me."

Tyra coughed "Remind you of anyone, Doc?"

"Don't call me that," the Doctor mumbled "Anyway, I'm the Doctor. If anyone's interested."

"And I'm Rose. Hello."

Pete looked at the two of them "Even better. That's the name of my dog." Tyra looked from Rose to Mickey, trying to keep her expression blank. Mickey wasn't helping the matter by shaking with silent laughter. It was one thing to simply not exist or have a bad copy who collects parking tickets like it was free candy but to be replaced by a dog? "Still, at least I've got the catering staff on my side."

"Don't forget the Scooby Gang," Tyra added with a grin.

Rose shot her an annoyed look "Shut up, Tyra." She smiled at her parallel father "I knew you weren't a traitor."

Pete raised his eyebrow, more than uncomfortable with the girl's behaviour. She was acting like she knew him… Like there was something else "Why is that, then?"

Rose, realising that she was starting to sound crazy, just shrugged "I just did."

"They took my wife," Pete pointed out.

"She might still be alive," Rose murmured comfortingly.

Pete let out a strangled laugh "That's even worse. Because that's what Lumic does. He takes the living and he turns them into those machines."

"Cybermen," the Doctor corrected "They're called Cybermen. And I'd take those ear pods off if I were you. You never know. Lumic could be listening." He took them from the other man and zapped them with his screwdriver "But he's overreached himself. He's still just a businessman. He's assassinated the President. All we need to do is get to the city and inform the authorities. Because I promise you, this ends tonight."

Silence settled over the van and it wasn't long before Tyra started biting her lip. She had been thinking back to the parallel Mikaelsons and now that there was no danger for the moment, she just had to ask "I have a question," she spoke up, looking at Pete.

"Go on," the man gestured, looking vaguely intrigued.

"That family," she started, tugging her hair behind her ear "The Mikaelsons? There was a blonde woman with them. I – Who was she?"

Pete tilted his head "You know the Mikaelsons but not Freya? I'm guessing it's her you're talking about and not Rebekah? She is the oldest."

Tyra clenched her hand into her thigh, relaxing a little at the wave of pain that it brought with it. Freya… The reason why their parents moved to the New World. The one who died before she was born. Finn never liked to talk about her much, so Tyra wasn't surprised that she didn't recognise her but she had to admit that Freya was beautiful "I – Do you know her?"

"Not very well, no," Pete shook his head "I mostly deal with Elijah or Finn since they are the co-CEOs of their company. Why do you ask?"

"No reason, I guess," she mumbled averting her eyes.

Mickey grabbed Tyra's hand, pulling her to rest against him again "You alright?"

"Yeah," she nodded.

"We're here," Mrs Moore cut in, the van slowing down.

* * *

The group filed out and went to look around but before Tyra could join the others, the Doctor caught her arm "Did you get them out alright?" he whispered into her ear.

Tyra froze for a moment, staring at him with wide eyes before she relaxed "Of course, you'd know. I'm sorry, though. I know you don't like it when we…"

"Hey," he cut her off "It's alright. Not a fixed point. Are they alright?"

"I think so," she nodded "They were fine when I left but they could have gotten caught again."

The Doctor wrapped his arm around Tyra's shoulders, steering her after the others "I'm sure they're fine. Who's Freya, by the way?"

"My oldest sister," Tyra murmured "I told you why my parents came to the New World, right? Freya died and… Well. We never really talked about her, so I didn't think about the fact that she could be alive here."

Jake stared at the people on the plaza in shock "What the hell?"

"What's going on?" Rose frowned at the zombie-like crowd.

The Doctor closed his eyes and exhaled "It's the ear pods. Lumic's taken control."

"Can't we just, I don't know, take them off?" Rose questioned, reaching out to the nearest person.

"Don't," the Doctor snapped "Cause a brainstorm. Human race. For such an intelligent lot, you aren't half susceptible. Give anyone a chance to take control and you submit." He shook his head in exasperation "Sometimes I think you like it. Easy life."

Jake whispered lowly from around the corner "Hey, come and see."

Tyra joined him, watching as more people were herded away by Cybermen. Rose pressed herself against the wall "Where are they all going?"

"I don't know," the Doctor mumbled "Lumic must have a base of operations."

Pete inhaled "Battersea. That's where he was building his prototypes."

"Why's he doing it?" Rose questioned curiously.

"He's dying," Pete shrugged "This all started out as a way of prolonging life, of keeping the brain alive at any cost."

Tyra hummed "So no vampires here, then."

"What?" Pete blinked.

"Erm… Nothing, sorry," Tyra grimaced, cursing herself for saying that out loud.

Rose looked up at the Doctor "The thing is, I've seen Cybermen before, haven't I? The head. Those handle shapes in Van Statten's museum."

"But those were different though, weren't they?" Tyra asked "I mean, these look… sleeker? Different in any case."

"Trust," the Doctor agreed "There are Cybermen in our universe. They started on an ordinary world, just like this, then swarmed across the galaxy. This lot are a parallel version and they're starting from scratch right here on Earth."

"I take it that's not a good thing," Tyra groaned, resting her head against the wall of the building she was standing by.

Pete looked at the three of them "What the hell are you three on about?"

"Never mind that," Ricky snapped "Come on, we need to get out of the city. Okay, split up. Mrs Moore, you look after that bloke. Jake, distract them. Go right, I'll go left. We'll meet back at Bridge Street. Move."

"I'm going with him," Mickey said, nodding to Ricky before looking over at Tyra "What about you?"

Tyra grinned at him "As if I'm going to sit by while you undoubtedly get in trouble."

"Ty?" the Doctor questioned, a hint of hesitation in his voice. He hated the fact that she continued to go with Mickey whenever they split up. He wanted her with him but… He understood that she would rather spend time with one of her friends. Another one of her friends… Oh, it didn't matter.

"I'm going with Mickey," she told him with a small smile "… Be careful, alright?"

He smiled lightly, shooing her off "Take care of him?"

"Don't I always?" she joked before running after the two boys, wrapping her arm around Mickey's waist.

"Which way?" Mickey questioned, looking at Ricky "I don't know where we are."

Ricky pulled the other two against the wall with him "Did they see us?"

"Do they know where we are?" Mickey breathed at the same time.

They looked at each other "I bet they saw us," Ricky mumbled, glancing around nervously, while Tyra shook her head in amusement "I bet they can see in the dark…"

"I bet they've got satellites," Mickey added.

"They know where we are," the two chorused in horror.

Tyra snorted "God, you two are cute," she shook her head "Are you done now?"

"I don't get it," Ricky complained, shooting Tyra an annoyed look before nodding to Mickey "You are exactly like me."

"Oh, yes," Tyra egged him on "Do go on, Ricky."

Mickey hit the back of her head "Shut up, Ty."

"You wound me, Mickey," she laughed "But seriously. We're… from another universe. Parallel to this one. It's similar but still different."

Ricky blinked "So what you guys said earlier… That was what you were talking about? Are you…? Is that why you asked about that family? The Mikaelsons?"

"Yup," Tyra nodded "You know, you're as smart as Mick, even if he doesn't think so."

Ricky tilted his head "By the way, they are elite here in London. Have been for generations?"

"Really?" Tyra questioned, slightly surprised "Good for them. I didn't expect to see them in Pete's house, you know. I didn't want to go look for them because I was afraid…" She swallowed "And what do I see? Them as Human with two of my very dead siblings still alive and kicking."

"Human?"

She waved him off "It's complicated. I might explain later but for now… Hush. They're coming."

"Cybermen," Mickey murmured in horror, looking from Tyra to Ricky and back.

"Split up?" They nodded at each other. Ricky ran to the left while Mickey and Tyra went to the right, trying to avoid the Cybermen coming towards them.

"Shit," Tyra cursed lowly when she saw that Ricky was on the wrong side of a tall chain-link fence with Cybermen right behind him.

Mickey grabbed her arm rightly, staring at his double as he mumbled under his breath "Come on, come on, come on." Tyra freed herself, swinging over the fence. She reached out to practically toss Ricky onto the other side where Mickey was "Ty, watch out."

She whirled around, only to be grabbed by one of the Cybermen "Argh," she groaned, feeling the electricity course through her. Tyra jerked her arm up, dislocating the grip of the metal arm before delivering a hard kick against the Cyberman's chest. She jumped, grabbing at some chain-link. She made her way up onto the fence with a little difficulty before practically tumbling down the other side.

Mickey wrapped her arm around his shoulder, pulling her along "Hurry."

* * *

"Here they are," Jake called out as soon as he saw the others came into view.

The Doctor looked up, his face immediately changing to worry when he saw Tyra. She was still leaning against Mickey but not as heavily as before "What happened?" he demanded, tilting her head up to see the mark on her throat slowly disappear.

"Run in with a Cyberman," she muttered, rubbing at her throat "I'm fine, though."

"Thank you," Ricky said, wrapping his arm around her tightly.

Tyra stiffened in surprise before patting his back "You're welcome, Ricky."

The Doctor looked at Tyra for a moment longer, feeling ready to wrap her into bubble wrap and put her back into the Tardis but he refrained. She could take care of herself but that didn't mean he liked any of this "Let's go," he spoke louder "Move."

* * *

Before long, they were standing at the edge of the Thames, looking at the Battersea factory just across the water "The whole of London's been sealed off and the entire population's been taken inside that place. To be converted," the Doctor spoke up, his dark eyes on the factory.

"We've got to get in there and shut it down," Rose murmured.

Mickey raised his eyebrow "How do we do that?"

The Doctor hummed "Oh, I'll think of something."

"You're just making it up as you go along," Mickey accused.

"Yep," the Doctor nodded, winking at him "But I do it brilliantly."

Mrs Moore walked up to them with a Cybus Industries laptop, turning it so we could see it "That's a schematic of the old factory. Look. Cooling tunnels underneath the plant. Big enough to walk through."

The Doctor pointed to a part of the display "We go under there and up into the control centre?"

"Hmm," the woman nodded.

Pete licked his lips "There's another way in. Through the front door. If they've taken Jackie for upgrading, that's how she'll get in."

Jack scoffed "We can't just go strolling up."

"Or we could," Mrs Moore argued, pulling out a pair of fake ear pods "With these. Fake ear pods. Dead. No signal. But put them on, the Cybermen would mistake you for one of the crowd."

Pete took them from her hands "Then that's my job."

"You have to show no emotion," the Doctor explained "None at all. Any sign of emotion would give you away."

Rose looked at the parallel version of her father in worry "How many of those you got?" she asked Mrs Moore.

"Just two sets," the woman shrugged.

Rose nodded "Okay. If that's the best way of finding Jackie, then I'm coming with you."

Tyra groaned out loud at her. Mickey shoved Tyra's shoulder, shaking his head before she could say anything that would piss Rose off while Pete looked at the girl in confusion "Why does she matter to you?"

"We haven't got time," Rose shook her head "Doctor, I'm going with him and that's that."

The Doctor looked at her with a sigh "No stopping you, is there?"

Tyra rolled her eyes. This was going beyond everything now and she just wanted this to be done with, so she could curl up in her bed. She might have saved her parallel family but Rose was just ignoring everything the Doctor was saying and he was going along with it. Just like he went along last year when Rose wanted to see her father.

"No," Rose shook her head.

He sighed "Tell you what. We can take the ear pods at the same time. Give people their minds back so they don't walk into that place like sheep. Jakey-boy? Ricky? Lumic's transmitting the control signal. It must be from over there." He waved his sonic screwdriver in the direction of the power station with the Zeppelin parked on top with a circle of red lights blinking right on top "There it is. On the Zeppelin, you see? Great big transmitter. Good thing Lumic likes showing off. Reckon you could take it out?"

Jake smiled with a nod "Consider it done."

The Doctor nodded "Mrs Moore, would you care to accompany me into the cooling tunnels?"

"How would I refuse an offer of cooling tunnels?" she laughed lightly.

"We attack on three sides," the Doctor continued "Above." He gestured to Jake, Ricky, Mickey and Tyra "Between." Rose and Pete "Below. We get to the control centre, we stop the conversion machines."

Ricky clapped Tyra's shoulder, jerking his head "Are you coming?"

"Yeah," she murmured, glancing at the Doctor for a moment longer.

The Doctor pointed to Tyra when he noticed the look on her face "If we survive this, I'll see you two back at the Tardis."

"That's a promise," Mickey nodded, walking off.

Tyra followed Jake with Ricky and Mickey on either side of her. Ricky looked over her head at Mickey "So… You're from another universe?"

"Yeah," Mickey nodded.

"Can I just ask. If you're me there, then what's different?" Ricky questioned.

Mickey looked down at Tyra and sighed "For one, I'm alone… Gran – Gran died years ago and since then…"

"That's why you were at the house, weren't you?" Jake asked, glancing over his shoulder "You were checking whether she was still alive here?"

"Yeah," Mickey sighed "That stupid carpet… I should have fixed it. If I had…"

Tyra wrapped her arms around his middle again even if she didn't particularly feel like comforting anyone at the moment "Mickey, you couldn't have known."

"But still."

"You told me not to blame myself for Henri," she murmured "You shouldn't blame yourself for your grandmother."

It was around then that they reached the ladder that lead up to the roof. Jake gestured for us to wait a moment, climbing up first. He peaked over the ledge and nodded "Two guards," he breathed "We can take them."

"I'll go," Tyra told him "It'll only take a moment. Shift."

Mickey caught her wrist as she moved past him "Don't kill them, will you?"

"I don't plan on killing anyone," Tyra shrugged "Just going to grab a quick bite."

"What?" Ricky frowned, wrinkling his nose.

Mickey sighed "Do you need to?"

Tyra looked down at him "Well, I don't know about you but electrocution isn't the nicest feeling in the world. Plus, you need them taken care of, right?"

"Right," Mickey nodded "Sorry. Go for it."

Tyra winked before pulling herself over the ledge, speeding towards the two guards. She wrapped her arm around one of them, quickly compelling him to keep quiet before biting into the other's neck. Once she was done, they were both unconscious on the ground "They're out," she called over to the others.

"This is seriously weird… And kind of gross," Jake commented, turning one of the guards' heads to the side to see the bite "I mean, how does that even work? Are you like one of the vampires from the stories?"

"Sort of but not really," Tyra told him "There's truth in the myths but there's also a whole lot of bullshit."

Ricky walked past them "Not really the time, guys."

"Sorry," Jake and Tyra mumbled, following him into the Zeppelin.

They disposed of a few more guards. The others distracted them, while Tyra compelled them to think their duty was done and to forget that they saw them "Nice one," Jake nodded "Are they gone for good?"

"They should be," she shrugged "At the very least, they won't say anything to anyone."

"Find the transmitter controls," Ricky hissed.

Mickey tilted his head "What do they look like?"

Jake rolled his eyes and smirked "Well, I don't know. They might have 'Transmitter Controls' written in big red letters. Just look!" The Zeppelin had a nice big ship's wheel for steering "Cyberman!" Jake called out, pointing his gun at it.

"It's dead," Mickey murmured "I don't think it was ever alive." He knocked on its head three times "It's empty. No brain. It's just a robot suit for display."

Ricky and Jake relaxed "Okay. Transmitter."

"Guys," Tyra called over "I think I found it." She pointed to a box that had 'Transmitter Controls' written on it. She looked up at Jake and grinned "It seems like Jake is a psychic. Or the bad guys are so cliché that… We'll go with cliché."

Mickey ran over, glancing over the box "The controls are sealed behind here. We need like oxyacetylene or something."

Jake shot him a look "Oh, and I forgot to bring it with me."

"Well, then, what do we do?" Mickey demanded.

"We'll crash the Zeppelin," Ricky shot back.

Mickey gaped at him "With us inside it?"

"We could set it to automatic," Jake shrugged "And just leg it. Let's have a look." He walked over to the steering controls and inspected them "It's locked. There's got to be an override."

Tyra blinked at the screen "You know, I might be starting to somewhat understand the Tardis – not really…. But this is way over my head. What are you trying to do?"

"You are so old and didn't learn about technology?" Mickey huffed.

She scoffed "Bite me, Mickey. I had other things to worry about."

"Like what?" Ricky questioned curiously while Mickey went to work on the computer.

"Running from my siblings and my father, taking care of the people under my protection, helping one of my friends," she scratched her head "Things happened. I moved around a lot." She whirled around when she heard a noise behind her. The Cyberman in the corner had moved "Not to be a downer or anything but… that Cyberman is moving."

Jake tightened his grip on the gun "You said it was dead," he hissed at Mickey.

"Yeah," Mickey shrugged sheepishly "But a robot's still a big robot." He stopped, his face lighting up "Wait a minute. Hey, Cyberman, over here. Come on, you brainless lump of metal. Come and have a go." Mickey positioned himself in front of the Transmitter Controls, beckoning the Cyberman towards him. Tyra tensed, making sure to be ready in case he needed help. Mickey ducked as the Cyberman smashed its fist into the panel, electrocuting itself "The transmitter's down."

Tyra tilted her head, hearing a commotion going on outside "It worked. People are panicking."

"Woah," Jake mumbled "You can actually hear that?"

"They're kind of loud," Tyra nodded.

Mickey was still typing furiously "Hold on, I've logged onto Cyber Control." A video popped up in the monitor in front of them "They're alive. The Doctor and Rose, there they are."

"Did you doubt them?" Tyra questioned with a small shake of her head.

Jake stared at the monitor with wide eyes "Never mind them, what the hell is that thing?"

Tyra furrowed her brow "I think that is the Cybercontroller which would mean that this thing is most likely what is left of Lumic."

"Shush," Mickey placed his hand over Tyra's mouth "Has this thing got sound?"

"_I will bring peace to the world,_" the Controller proclaimed "_Everlasting peace. And unity and uniformity._"

"_And imagination? What about that?_" the Doctor questioned, looking up at the thing "_The one thing that lead you here, imagination, you're killing it dead._"

Lumic looked down "_What is your name?_"

"_I'm the Doctor._"

"_A redundant title,_" the Cyberman dismissed "_Doctors need not exist. Cybermen never sicken._"

"_Yeah, but that's it. That's exactly the point. Oh, Lumic, you're a clever man,_" the Doctor sighed "_I'd call you a genius, except I'm in the room. But everything you've invented, you did to fight your sickness. And that's brilliant. That is so human. But once you get rid of sickness and mortality, then what's there to strive for, eh? The Cybermen won't advance. You'll just stop. You'll stay like this forever. A metal Earth with metal men and metal thoughts, lacking the one thing that makes this planet so alive. People. Ordinary, stupid, brilliant people._"

"Oh, he's off on a tangent again," Tyra mumbled, leaning against the wheel.

Ricky smirked "That sounds like he does that sort of stuff often?"

"He does," Mickey nodded "Trust me on that."

"At least this time it's not the lyrics from 'Circle of Life'," Tyra pointed out.

Lumic barely moved "_You are proud of your emotions._"

"_Oh, yes,_" the Doctor nodded.

"_Then tell me, Doctor. Have you known grief and rage and pain?_"

The Doctor nodded "_Yes. Yes, I have._"

"_And they hurt?_"

"_Oh, yes._"

If Lumic could have smirked, he would have "_I could set you free. Would you not want that? A life without pain?_"

"_You might as well kill me,_" the Doctor scoffed.

"Oh, bad move," Tyra winced.

Lumic nodded "_Then I take that option._"

"_It's not yours to take. You're a Cyber Controller. You don't control me or anything with blood in its heart,_" the Doctor pointed out.

"_You have no means of stopping me,_" Lumic pointed out "_I have an army. A species of my own._"

The Doctor ran his hand through his hair "_You just don't get it, do you? An army's nothing. Because those ordinary people, they're the key. The most ordinary person could change the world._" He looked directly at the camera as he said that, winking "_Some ordinary man or woman, some idiot. All it takes is for him to find, say, the right numbers. Say the right codes. Say, for example, the code behind the emotional inhibitor. The code right in front of him. Because even an idiot knows how to use computers these days. Knows how to get past firewalls and passwords. Knows how to find something encrypted in the Lumic Family Database, under er… What was it, Pete? Binary what?_"

"_Binary nine,_" the man replied.

Jake laughed lightly, shaking his head "He really isn't subtle, is he?"

"I don't think he even knows what that word means," Tyra told him "But that's the charm."

"Shh," Mickey snapped "Binary nine."

The Doctor continued "_An idiot could find that code. Cancellation code. And he'd keep on typing. Keep on fighting. Anything to save his friends._"

"_Your words are irrelevant,_" Lumic cut him off.

"_Yeah, talk too much, that's my problem,_" the Time Lord nodded "_Lucky I got you that cheap tariff, Rose, for all out long chats. On your phone._"

"Phone," Mickey blinked "Ty, do you have…?"

She pulled out her phone, opening the chat window for Rose's phone "Here."

"6879760," Mickey dictated.

"_You will be deleted._"

The Doctor hummed "_Yes. Delete, control, hash. All those lovely buttons. Then, of course, my particular favourite, send. And let's not forget how you seduced all those ordinary people in the first place._" It was then that Rose's phone beeped with the text Tyra just sent "_By making every bit of technology compatible with everything else._"

Rose looked up "_It's for you._"

"_Like this._" The Doctor put the phone into a docking station. The code transmitted and the Cybermen cried out in pain. The numbers appeared on every computer screen.

"Yes," Mickey, Ricky and Jake cheered, high-fiving each other before pulling Tyra into a group hug.

She looked at the screen "Jake, get the Zeppelin ready. It looks like everything's going to blow. I'll go get the others."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Ricky questioned.

"We can't just leave them," Mickey agreed with me "Ty, hurry it up."

Tyra nodded, running as fast as she could, her ears on what little she could make out inside the factory. It didn't take her long to find the Doctor, Rose and Pete "Go up," she called to them "Roof. We've got the Zeppelin."

The three ran up the metal staircase as fires broke out behind them "Tyra?"

"Here," she spoke up from further on the roof. The Zeppelin was already quite high but it was starting to lower down a little more towards them.

"Who is flying that thing?" Rose frowned, looking up in confusion.

Tyra shrugged "Either Mickey or Jake, I'd assume." She shifted to the side when a rope ladder fell out.

"You've got to be kidding," Pete mumbled.

The Doctor shoved Rose towards Tyra and the ladder "Rose, get up."

She went first, then Tyra, the Doctor and Pete was last "We did it," Rose cheered "We did it."

Something heavy pulled at the ladder, nearly making the others lose their grip. The Doctor fumbled with his screwdriver, looking down "Pete. Take this. Use it and hold the button down. Press it against the rope."

"Jackie Tyler. This is for her," Pete hissed as the rope gave away, causing Lumic to fall.

Tyra sighed tiredly, leaning her head against the rope "Oh God…"

* * *

The sky was starting to lighten when they got back to where the Tardis was parked. Tyra had joined Mickey, Ricky and Jake in their quest of going back to the Tyler Mansion, making sure there were no Cybermen left around here.

The Doctor stopped Rose when she was about to walk past him to her room "Rose, we have to talk."

Rose looked over at him, a confused look on her face "Can it wait? I want to change and I wanted to talk to Pete about something."

"No, it can't wait," the Doctor shook his head, positioning himself between Rose and the doorway "Look, Rose. I really don't want to do this but if you don't get your act together then I'm going to bring you home."

"What? Why would you do this?" she breathed, her eyes wide.

"I've been thinking about this - about your behaviour since you came back to the Game Station. You don't listen to me. I told you not to go and see your father, you ignored me. You behaved like a brat to Sarah Jane. I will excuse that because she wasn't much better but I'm serious, Rose. I don't want to leave you at home but if you continue that way, I'll have no choice."

Rose froze, her face turning a little red "This is all Tyra's..."

"This has nothing to do with Tyra," the Doctor cut her off "This is all you."

"But she was…"

The Doctor held up his hand "I will be talking to her as well. Don't get me wrong. I don't approve of everything she did recently but I'm talking to you right now."

Rose gritted her teeth, trying not to show the Doctor what she was thinking. Despite him claiming that this had nothing to do with Tyra, Rose knew that it was the other girl's fault "I'm sorry," she whispered, not even having to try. She was close to crying. The Doctor had hit some sore spots that Rose had carried a while "I really am."

The Doctor softened and nodded, stepping to the side to let Rose pass "I know."

* * *

Later in the morning, Tyra had her eyes closed, leaning against the side of the Tardis. A little way away, Rose and Pete were talking quietly "So, what happens inside that thing, then?" he asked.

Rose tilted her head "Do you want to see?"

"No," the man shook his head firmly "I don't think so. But you, you know, all that stuff you said about different world. Who are you?"

"It's like you said," Rose murmured "Imagine there are different world, parallel world. Worlds with another Pete Tyler and Jackie Tyler's still alive and their daughter…"

Tyra turned away, walking over to where Mickey was messing around with Jake and Ricky "So," she spoke up, looking up at her friend with a sad smile. They had been talking about Mickey staying on their excursion to the Tyler Mansion earlier "You're really staying?"

"I am," Mickey nodded "Is that alright?"

Tyra looked back at the Tardis "You don't need my permission. I'm going to miss you, though. All three of you. It's good you're staying together though." She nudged Mickey "You deserve friends… And maybe a twin as well."

Mickey pulled her into his arms, resting his head on top of hers "You've been an awesome friend, you know? Thank you."

"It's me who should be thanking you," Tyra mumbled into his chest "It's not like many people actually accept me once they find out."

"You could stay too," Jake told her quickly.

Tyra looked at hi and shook her head "I would love to. I really, really would but…"

"You don't want to leave him," Mickey finished, nodding to where the Tardis was "I don't blame you. He is a good man despite everything."

"It's not just him," Tyra explained "A good part of the reason are my siblings… I want to see them again. I'm scared of seeing them because I might or might not have pissed off Nik but… I want us to be a family again."

"I'm sure the day will come sooner than you think," the Doctor said, coming up behind them "We have to run… But one more thing. Mrs Moore. Her real name was Angela Price. She's got a husband out there and children. Fine them. Tell them how she died saving the world."

Jake and Ricky nodded "Of course we will."

The Doctor clasped Tyra's shoulder "Off we go, then."

"Erm, thing is, I'm staying," Mickey spoke up.

"You're doing what?" the Doctor blinked as Rose hurried over.

She shook her head "No, you can't. What about me? What if I need you?"

"Yeah, but Rose, you don't," Mickey pointed out "Tyra was right. We had something a long time ago but not anymore."

Tyra turned around when she heard footsteps hurrying towards them, blinking when she saw the parallel Mikaelsons coming over. She pulled away from the Doctor and smiled "I see you survived."

Rose raised her eyebrow "You saved them?" she hissed accusingly "When?"

"Before the Doctor atomised the Cybermen," Tyra told her.

"What?" Rose shouted, trying to lunge at the other girl "You could have saved my mum."

Tyra grabbed her arm, keeping her at a distance "She is not your mother, Rose."

"And they are not your family," Rose pointed out angrily. She was projecting now. Pushing everything onto Tyra, even if she might not deserve it. Although, at that moment, Rose really didn't care.

"I know," Tyra shrugged, tilting her head a little. The parallel Mikaelsons followed her a couple of steps away.

Henrik tilted his head "What did she mean? 'We're not your family'?"

"It's complicated," she sighed.

Kol placed his hand on her shoulder and smirked "I think we can keep up. After today, I don't think anything will surprise me anymore."

"I sincerely doubt that," Tyra snorted "Alright, fine… The Doctor, Mickey, Rose and I are from another universe. Where we come from… Henrik and Freya are dead and our parents – Mother was a witch who turned us into vampires."

The Mikaelsons blinked "Vampires?"

Tyra swallowed, letting her features shift for a second before her eyes turned into their normal blue "Yup."

"You know, I can actually see the similarities," Elijah murmured "May I ask about your age?"

"Sixteen," she mumbled "Well, I have been sixteen for a long time now but… Yeah. Henrik – My Henrik was my twin brother."

The parallel Henrik looked at the girl sadly "How did he die?"

"Ty," the Doctor called from the Tardis "We have to leave now."

"I…" Tyra rubbed at her arm "I should go." Henrik hesitated for barely a second before he pulled her into his arms. Tyra let out a shaky breath, trying hard not to cry at the familiar sensation of hugging her twin – not her twin. It hurt but a part of her felt good, felt that it was right to be in his arms again.

"Thank you," Freya smiled, placing her hand on Tyra's shoulder for a moment "For saving my family."

Tyra nodded "You're welcome." She turned, running back to the Tardis. Before she entered, she glanced back to where Ricky, Mickey and Jake were being joined by the parallel Mikaelsons.


	9. Fool Me Once

"Tyra?" the Doctor cleared his throat.

Tyra turned to him, looking away from Rose and Jackie "Hm?"

"Can we talk? There is something I… Something we need to talk about," he murmured, gesturing to the Tardis.

"Erm, sure," Tyra nodded, narrowing her eyes. She had no idea what was going on but from the Doctor's tone it seemed important "What is it?"

The Doctor sighed, running a hand through his hair "I overheard you talking to Rose… Or the other way around."

Tyra raised her eyebrow "And?"

"I heard part of it," he admitted "I just want to know what you were talking about. Ever since then you and Rose seem to really dislike each other."

"It's been coming a long time," she shrugged "And I'm not going to tell you the answer. If you wish to know, then ask Rose. Honestly, I'm just trying to stay out of her way. If I don't, I'll do something I'm going to regret for sure."

The Doctor put his hand on her shoulder "That's another thing. I know that you're trying but…"

"But I seem out of control," Tyra finished with a sad smile.

"What? No," he frowned "I wasn't going to say that."

Tyra shrugged "You weren't but it's not like I'm wrong. I know and I'm trying but life keeps throwing all this crap on me and I don't know what to do." It had been hard to admit but now that the truth left her lips, she actually felt a little better and it wasn't like the Doctor didn't understand.

"What do you mean?"

"Just… Everything," Tyra gestured "From your regeneration to having Cassandra in my head. Then Nik and Victoria. And now the parallel Mikaelsons and Mickey staying behind… It's like I can't move on because whenever I try, my past seems to just come up again."

The Doctor reached out and pulled Tyra into his arms. His hearts were aching at the pain in her voice "Maybe it's time to accept your past?"

Tyra let out a bitter laugh "Says you."

"I might not be the best person to give that piece of advice," the Doctor winced at the truth of her words "But that doesn't mean I'm wrong."

"I know that," she sighed "But you know as well as I do that it's harder than you think."

The Doctor hummed "True. You're doing well, though. You're facing your past every day and you're surviving. You're having fun. That's something not everyone can do."

"Only thanks to you," Tyra whispered with a small smile, leaning against the Doctor a little more.

He couldn't help but press a small kiss to Tyra's forehead "I'm just going to tell Rose that I'm moving the Tardis outside. How about we watch a movie or something?"

"I'm choosing," Tyra shot back, ignoring the fact that she could still feel his lips on her forehead "I really don't want to be stuck in another Disney marathon."

"Blasphemy," the Doctor cried "Disney is the best."

Tyra rolled her eyes "Says the guy who starts crying every time."

He pouted exaggeratedly "You're so cold-hearted. How can you not cry?" The Doctor went to leave the Tardis before he stopped, looking over his shoulder "Can you just promise me one thing?"

"What is it?"

"Promise me that it's nothing bad. That what you and Rose are keeping from me is nothing bad," the Doctor clarified.

Tyra smiled reassuringly "I promise you. You have nothing to worry about."

The Doctor looked at her for a moment before he nodded, slipping out of the Tardis.

* * *

"I'm bored," Tyra sighed after the second movie. Rose had decided that she wanted to spend the night with her mother after what happened in the parallel universe. Even Tyra's mind was still whirling with the memories that her parallel family had stirred up but she pushed them back.

The Doctor turned away from the movie they had been watching and raised his eyebrow "Where do you want to go then? Whole universe is open."

Tyra blinked and pointed to the door "What about Rose?" Not that she necessarily cared but Tyra had a very good idea of how the other girl would react if she noticed them leaving without her.

"She's with her mother. She won't notice. And I think that it would do us both some good to get away from her for an hour or two. So, what do you say?"

"Famous last words there," Tyra snorted "Hey, can we… maybe go and visit a friend? I haven't seen him in almost fifty years. I think I have a good idea of where he is but if not then I'll just show you around the town that was built on the land where I grew up."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes at the girl in front of him "Him?"

"Yup," Tyra shrugged "So, can we?"

"Sure," the Doctor nodded and waved her over and gestured to the console "Here. Do you remember what I taught you a while ago?"

She licked her lips nervously "I think so. Are you sure that it's…"

"I wouldn't have said it otherwise," the Doctor cut her off "Here. I'll show you what to do again." With that, he guided Tyra through the Tardis' set-off and showed her how to make sure that she landed where she wanted to go. Tyra was a little overwhelmed but she managed to do what the Doctor had explained successfully.

Tyra grinned when the shaking of the Tardis stopped and looked up at the Doctor "So, did I get it?"

"Let's see," the Doctor glanced at the monitor and hummed "Mystic Falls. End of the year… 2006. I think you got it."

"Yes," Tyra cheered and held out her hand "Come on. I want to show you where I grew up." The Doctor shook his head with a smile, placing his hand in Tyra's. He hadn't seen her that excited in a while, so he really didn't mind at all. Especially not after what happened yesterday with Mickey staying behind and her seeing her parallel family. It must have been really hard for her to leave them. Even if she knew that they weren't her actual family.

The Doctor looked around interestedly "When have you been here last?"

"Maybe a hundred and fifty years? I don't really remember the exact year," Tyra shrugged. The two started walking around the town with her occasionally pointing out several buildings that – even if changed – were still more or less recognisable "This is the – apparently – very, very creatively named 'Mystic Grill'. I feel like they just said fuck it and slapped 'Mystic' in front of every single establishment."

"When was this town founded anyway?" the Doctor questioned. He knew when Tyra lived here but… other than that, he didn't really know much about Mystic Falls. So far he was pretty underwhelmed by the town. It was way too boring for his tastes.

Tyra pulled him along, heading towards the woods to show the Doctor the caves where they hid during the full moon "In the late 1800s. A few years before I was here last, actually. The funny thing is that the Founding families are still a huge deal here. I think they still have the council going on that deals with everything supernatural that pops up in the town."

"What? Why?"

"Because when the families founded the town, there was a pretty large group of vampires that stayed in the town. It took a while for them to become aware of the matter but soon the Council started hunting them down." Tyra broke off for a moment and cleared her throat "I'm not sure what happened after they were caught. Either they died or they were locked away and killed."

The Doctor grimaced. So, this town wasn't as boring as it seemed "So, that friend you want to see. Who is he?"

"Damon," Tyra explained "His name is Damon Salvatore. He – Well, I'm sure you'll meet him soon if he's here. There's really nothing that I can say that can aptly explain Damon."

"Aw," the Doctor huffed with a pout "But I like your stories."

Tyra rolled her eyes "Yeah, yeah. They're not nearly as exciting as yours though."

"Don't say that," he shook his head "They're a different kind of exciting."

"If you say so," Tyra murmured, rolling her shoulders.

The Doctor's face dropped a little "I'm sorry." When Tyra frowned at him in confusion, he shrugged "About Mickey. That he chose to stay behind."

"Don't be," she smiled, nudging his shoulder "Mickey chose to stay in the other universe and I can't say that I blame him for that decision." She was about to say something else when she heard a twig snap further into the woods, the sound of a tree breaking following soon after "Shh."

"What's wrong?" the Doctor whispered.

Tyra shook her head "Stay here. I think I know who that is." She heard Damon ranting and cursing about a tomb or something of that sort and had a pretty good idea of what had happened "I'll be right back." With that, Tyra sped off in the direction of the noises. When she finally spotted Damon, she slowed down.

"That fucking bitch," he hissed, hitting his hand through the nearest tree.

Tyra winced and stepped a little closer with a smirk "What did that tree ever do to you, Day-Day?"

Damon whirled around and relaxed instantly when he recognised the girl "I told you not to call me that, Ty-Ty."

"Okay, okay," Tyra surrendered with a laugh "What's going on, Damon?"

He sighed, running a hand through his hair "I told you about Katherine and how she was trapped in the tomb, right?"

"And I told you that there was a pretty low chance of her actually being in there. Katerina has always been a crafty bitch," Tyra shot back "I take it that I was right?"

"Yes," Damon growled "That goddamn bitch. I loved her and she…"

Tyra looked up at him and sighed "Damon… Katerina isn't – and was never – worth your love. Trust me on that. There is something that I haven't told you before but I might just explain. Maybe it'll help. I don't know."

"Tell me what?" the Salvatore frowned "Is it how you know her? Cause you never did say."

"Yeah," Tyra nodded and held her hand out for Damon to take "Come on. I left a friend waiting for me a bit that way. Don't really want him to get into any trouble." A noise caused her to raise her eyebrows "Never mind. Seems as if he took it upon himself to come to us instead."

"Hey," the Doctor exclaimed, stumbling out of the trees. He looked from Damon to Tyra and down to their intertwined hands "Who is that, Ty?"

"Damon, that's the Doctor. Doctor, that's the friend I've been meaning to visit. Damon Salvatore," she introduced.

Damon tilted his head. So this was the first time they were meeting him. Well, meeting him together. How interesting. That meant that he would be able to talk to Tyra about all of this soon "Just Doctor?" he questioned, just to get the suspicion off of him.

"Just Doctor," the Doctor nodded, frowning internally at the amusement in Damon's eyes. As if he knew the answer before he asked his question.

"So you talked about me, did you?" Damon wagged his eyebrows with a smirk at Tyra.

Tyra coughed, trying to stop her fond grin "I mentioned you earlier. Once. No need to get cocky."

The Doctor rolled his eyes and looked around the clearing, freezing at the picture of a tree with a hole through the middle "What happened here?"

"Ah… Damon got a bit… emotional," Tyra explained, looking up at the Doctor "Hey… Would you mind if Damon comes with us for a trip or two? I'd really like to catch up with him and judging by what happened, I don't think it's a good idea for him to stay here right now."

"Can I ask why?"

She looked from Damon to the Doctor and sighed when the other vampire just shook his head "I'll tell you later. It's a bit of a long story."

"Sure," the Doctor shrugged "Just two rules." When Damon nodded "No wandering off and no eating people. Ty has blood bags that you can use if you need blood. Or you might be able to ask the Tardis for some."

"Where's the fun in that?" Damon pouted playfully.

Tyra hit him over the back of the head, making him pout even more "I think you can stop yourself from biting people for a few days, Damon."


	10. Idiot's Lantern

Tyra was sitting sideway on the jump seat with Damon next to her, her legs resting over his comfortably. Damon's left arm was wrapped around Tyra's bent knees. He had reacted surprisingly well to the whole 'time and space travel' thing and seemed excited for what the Doctor had in store. Tyra wasn't too sure but somehow she felt as if he was reacting too well.

"Then there's Elena," Damon said with a sigh. He had been talking about his time in Mystic Falls for the last hour while they waited for the Doctor to come back from wherever he had disappeared to "She's my brother's girlfriend and…" Damon cleared his throat, looking down "She looks exactly like Katherine."

Tyra shot up on shock "Wait, what?" There was no way Damon had found a Human Doppelgänger… Was there? It has been around five hundred years since Katerina but according to her siblings, the line ended with her. If there was a Human Doppelgänger then maybe Katerina had been more like Tatia than they thought.

"Elena is an exact copy of Katherine," he repeated before shaking his head "Well, not an exact copy. She is a whole lot nicer."

Before Tyra could try to figure out what to say to that, the Tardis door was thrown open and Rose stormed in, looking around angrily "Where's the Doctor?"

"He's working on something," Tyra shrugged, rolling her eyes at Rose "Don't ask me. He should be back in a bit though."

"Why the hell did you leave without me?" Rose demanded, stalking closer to the two people on the jump seat.

Tyra looked up calmly "You were with your mother. We were gone for a few hours at most. Does it really matter?" She saw Rose's face change before a thought came to mind "Unless there is a reason why you think the Doctor would leave you behind."

"Shut up," Rose hissed "Just… Shut up."

"Who is that then?" Damon spoke up, cutting off the rest of Rose's rant. His arms had tightened around Tyra's legs as his eyes narrowed on the girl in front of him. He didn't like how she spoke to his friend at all but Tyra seemed way too relaxed for this to be a new development.

"Right," Tyra murmured "Damon, Rose Tyler. Rose, this is an old friend of mine. Damon Salvatore."

Rose raised her eyebrow, looking the new guy up and down as good as she could with Tyra all over him "What is he doing here?"

"The Doctor offered him a few trips," Tyra explained, nudging Damon's side with a small smile "Even if he hadn't said yes, I would have probably tried to convince him. There's no way I would have left you alone."

"Hey, don't complain," Damon grinned "I'm not that bad."

Tyra tilted her head in consideration "Do you really want an honest answer to that?"

Damon grimaced "Probably not, no."

Rose looked from Tyra to Damon "Is he…?" She looked back to Damon "Are you one of… those too?"

"If by 'those' you mean a vampire, then yes," Damon told her with narrowed eyes whispering "Is she for real?" to Tyra.

Tyra nodded "Sadly, yeah."

"What are you talking about?" Rose asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Don't answer her," Damon murmured, pulling Tyra closer to him "Just ignore her. People like that think they are better than everyone else."

Rose snorted, filling in the blanks she was missing "I don't think I'm better. I know it." She glared at Tyra "Hell, you preach about listening to the Doctor and all that while you ran off to save your family in the parallel universe. Funny, isn't it? With the way you treated me after I saved my father."

Tyra shot up from the jump seat, stalking towards Rose angrily "You don't know anything," she hissed through clenched teeth "The Doctor knew I went back inside. I only got them out of the house. The rest was up to them."

"You left my mother in there," Rose yelled.

Damon wrapped an arm around Tyra's waist, pulling her onto his lap "Calm down, Tyra. Just let her talk." He might not know Rose personally but Tyra had told him a lot about their last adventures and about Mickey.

"I didn't see her, Rose," Tyra explained, taking a deep breath. No killing Rose… No killing… "Also… How often do you have to hear it before you understand? She was not your mother and they were not my family. Your mother is healthy and happy outside of these doors."

Rose opened her mouth to snap back when the Doctor stepped into the console room, taking in the scene "Oh, you're back," he noted, smiling at Rose before he caught sight of Tyra sitting on Damon's lap. He couldn't stop the jab of jealousy that welled up inside of him. They were so close and even if Tyra said they were just friends… The Doctor wondered.

"Did you finish what you were trying to do?" Tyra asked.

The Doctor hummed "Yeah. We're all ready to go now," he explained and looked at Damon "Any wishes?"

"I don't know…" He turned to look at Tyra "What do you think?"

"How about the fifties? Since… You know?" she gestured, watching as his eyes lit up in realization.

"Fifties," the Doctor repeated, considering his options "How about we go and see Elvis?"

Rose was still standing in front of Tyra with her arms crossed. She hadn't gotten a word in edgewise and the more often she tried, the more annoyed she got "I'm going to change," she grumbled, storming out.

"Okay, then," Tyra drawled, looking down at herself. While she was wearing black leather skinny jeans and an oversized white sweater, she really didn't want to change. Especially since she didn't feel like a dress today "I think this will work… I wore worse things before."

The Doctor looked over his shoulder with a grin, his eyes wandering down Tyra's figure before he shrugged "Just act as if you own the place. It usually works for me."

Tyra laughed "True. I mean, I was wearing a suit when we met Victoria. Although that didn't really count…" She tapped her cheek "Ah, I was wearing a dress when we met Jack…"

"Ah, when I met your brother for the first time," the Doctor hummed.

"Yup," Tyra snorted before shifting. She looked over her shoulder at Damon "You can let me go now…"

Damon blinked "Oh, right. Sorry."

"Don't worry about it," she murmured, moving to the side to sit next to him again.

* * *

It took Rose the better part of half an hour to come back to the console room. Enough time for the Doctor to style his hair and find two scooters somewhere in the Tardis. Rose looked around outside, letting the skirt of her dress swing a little "I thought we'd be going for the Vegas era, you know the white flares and the, grr, chest hair."

The Doctor turned to Rose in confusion "We said we'd go to the fifties. Also, you want to see Elvis, you go for the late fifties. The time before burgers. When they called him the Pelvis and he still had a waist. What's more, you see him in style." He threw Rose a helmet before grabbing two more for Damon and Tyra. The Doctor winked at Rose and Tyra "You going my way, doll?"

"Is there any other way to go, daddy-o? Straight from the fridge, man," Rose laughed.

Tyra winced "You two do know that that is not how Americans sound, right?"

"I'm a little offended," Damon mumbled, leaning against the silver one of the scooters "At least you're not American, Ty. All those stereotypes."

"Technically, I am," she shot back "I might not have the accent but I was born in Virginia. Didn't I tell you that before?"

Damon tilted his head "Wait, is that why you came to Mystic Falls all those years ago?"

"The town is built on my homeland," she explained and frowned "Have I really never told you that?"

"You barely talked about your past," Damon told me "Well, not the stuff that matters anyway."

The Doctor looked from Damon to Tyra before his attention turned back to Rose "Ignore the spoilsports. You speak the lingo."

"Oh, well," the blonde shrugged "Me, mum, Cliff Richards movies every Bank Holiday Monday." She got on the pillion and put on the bright pink helmet while Tyra got on behind Damon, leaning her head against Damon's back.

"Ah, Cliff. I knew your mother would be a Cliff fan," the Doctor snorted, starting to drive down the street.

Rose looked around "Where we off to?"

"Ed Sullivan TV Studios," the Doctor called over the wind "Elvis did Hound Dog on one of the shows. There were loads of complaints. Bit of luck, we'll just catch it."

Tyra glanced up at the Union Flags strung up over the streets and started laughing "Well, at least we know his aim hasn't gotten better."

"Does this happen often?" Damon questioned, glancing up as well.

"Well, if I'm right, we're still in the fifties but… Definitely not in the US," she smirked "He messed up worse before. Like, brought Rose home a year later or went to 1879 instead of 1979. That was also where Rose was called a timorous beastie and they were banished by Queen Victoria. It was brilliant."

"Oh, I can see blondie being none too happy about that," Damon snorted in amusement.

Rose glanced at the Union Flags as well and shook her head "And that'll be TV studios in – what? – New York?"

"That's the one," the Doctor nodded before coming to a sudden stop when a red London bus drove past the end of a street. He pulled up by a red post box and looked up to see a ton of flags strung up between the houses.

Rose started laughed "Ha! Digging that New York vibe."

"Well, this could still be New York," the Doctor mumbled "I mean, this looks very New York to me. Sort of London-y New York, mind."

Tyra turned her head towards him "If this is New York, I'm Santa Claus."

"What are all the flags for?" Rose questioned curiously.

The Doctor shrugged and looked around to see a man unloading a television set from the back of a van "Let's find out."

"There you go, sir, all wired up for the great occasion," the man with the van smiled, nodding at the family in front of him.

"The great occasion" the Doctor blinked, tilting his head "What do you mean?"

The man raised his eyebrows in surprise "Where've you been living, out in the Colonies? The Coronation, of course."

"What Coronation's that then?"

Tyra raised her hand to her forehead and shook her head with a small grin "Queen Elizabeth II, Doctor."

"Oh," the Doctor breathed "Is this 1953?"

The man in front of them stared in confusion "Last time I looked. Time for a lovely bit of pomp and circumstance, what we do best."

Rose drew in a sharp breath "Look at all the TV aerials. Looks like everyone's got one. That's weird. My nan said tellies were so rare they all had to pile into one house."

"They were pretty rare, yeah," Tyra nodded.

Damon looked down at Tyra in confusion "I thought you were in the US in the fifties?"

"I was," Tyra shrugged "But it wasn't any different there. Also, I have some friends around here."

"Shush," Rose hissed, before turning back to the man they had been talking to.

"Not around here, they're not rare," the man shook his head "Magpie's Marvellous Tellies, only five quid a pop."

Damon stared at the man, incomprehension written all across his face "I have no idea what he's saying. Is he even speaking English?"

"Five pounds per television," Tyra translated quietly.

The Doctor nodded happily "Oh, but this is a brilliant year. Classic! Technicolour, Everest climbed, everything off the ration. The nation throwing off the shadows of war and looking forward to a happier, brighter future."

"Someone help me, please," a woman from across the street cried out "Ted!" Two burly men in black clothes had bundled a person into the back of a car with a blanket covering his head "Leave him alone! He's my husband. Please."

The group of four ran over, the man they had been talking to quickly taking his leave. Too quickly if anyone had been paying attention "What's going on?" the Doctor asked.

"Oi, what are you doing?" a young boy called, running out of the next house.

One of the men glanced at all the people around them and rolled his eyes in exasperation "Police business. Now, get out of the way, sir."

"Who did they take?" Rose murmured, looking at the boy "Do you know him?"

He nodded "Must be Mister Gallagher." The car drove away and he looked at the blonde next to him "It's happening all over the place. They're turning into monsters."

"Tommy," an angry voice shouted from behind "Not one word. Get inside now."

Tyra gripped Damon's hand, recognising the tone. Tommy closed his eyes for a moment "Sorry. I'd better do as he says."

"All aboard," the Doctor called, starting his scooter.

Rose jumped onto the back, while Damon and Tyra stayed where they were "What was that?" Damon questioned.

"What?"

Damon lifted their still interlocked hands and glanced down pointedly "Ty, what…?"

"Sorry," she mumbled "I'm not normally… I don't actually… Sorry."

Damon lifted her chin and sighed "I haven't seen you like this in a while," he whispered, pulling her into an embrace.

She leaned her head against his chest with a sigh "That man… He reminded me of my father. I don't normally think about it but… I don't know. Somehow seeing my family in the parallel universe… It brought up all the memories I tried to forget." She clenched her hands "I hate it when that happened. It always makes me weak."

"You're not weak," Damon insisted.

The Doctor's scooter came to a halt next to them "There you are."

"What's up?"

"We tried to follow them but they practically vanished," the Doctor muttered.

Damon tilted his head "How?"

"I wish I knew," the Doctor huffed "Come on." He walked in the direction of Tommy's house.

Rose immediately followed but Tyra hesitated a moment too long. Damon tugged at her hand "Just try not to think about it."

"Easier said than done," she mumbled "Sorry."

"Hi," Rose and the Doctor chorused as soon as the front door opened.

The man narrowed his eyes "Who are you, then?"

"Let's see, then," the Doctor hummed "Judging by the look of you, family man, nice house, decent wage, fought in the war. Therefore, I represent Queen and Country." He held up his psychic paper "Just doing a little check of Her forthcoming Majesty's subjects before the great day. Don't mind if we come in?" The Doctor pushed past him with Rose, while Damon and Tyra followed a little behind. Tyra eyes the man suspiciously "Nah, I didn't think you did. Thank you. Not bad," he nodded, looking around the living room "Very nice. Very well kept. I'd like to congratulate you, Mrs…?"

"Connolly," the woman on the armchair answered timidly.

Mr Connolly came into the room behind them "Now then, Rita. I can handle this. This gentleman's a proper representative. Don't mind the wife, she rattles on a bit."

"It's not the wife who talks to much," Tyra mumbled to Damon.

He smiled faintly "That's what I was thinking."

"Well," the Doctor half-snapped, narrowing his eyes on the man "Maybe she should rattle on a bit more. I'm not convinced you're doing your patriotic duty. Nice flags." He held up a chain of Union Jacks "Why are they not flying?"

Mr Connolly grabbed them out of his hands "There we are Rita, I told you. Get them up. Queen and Country."

"I'm sorry," Rita whispered.

"Get it done," Mr Connolly told her "Do it now."

The Doctor crossed his arms "Hold on a minute."

"Like the gentleman says…"

"Shut up," Tyra hissed, glaring at the man "You've got hands too. Just do it, will you?"

The Doctor stepped over to her, his hand on her shoulders "Ty…" he shook his head "Mr Connolly… Why is that your wife's job?"

"Well, it's housework, isn't it?" the man questioned, throwing Tyra a dirty look. He hated women talking down at him. They were better heard, not seen. Same with children.

"And that's a woman's job?"

Mr Connolly scoffed "Of course, it is."

Tyra tensed, ready to say something again when the Doctor squeezed her shoulders in warning "Mr Connolly, what gender is the Queen?"

"She's a female."

"And are you suggesting the Queen does the housework?" the Doctor challenged.

Mr Connolly paled "No. Not at all."

"Then get busy," the Doctor demanded, gesturing to the flags.

"Right," Mr Connolly nodded "Yes, sir. You'll be proud of us, sir. We'll have Union Jacks left, right and centre."

Rose raised her eyebrow "Excuse me, Mr Connolly. Hang on a minute. Union Jacks?"

"Yes, that's right, isn't it?" Mr Connolly blinked.

"That's the Union Flag," Rose pointed out "It's the Union Jack only when it's flown at sea."

Tyra snorted, before noticing Tommy's gaze on her. She sent him a small smile when Damon nudged her "Union Flag?"

Mr Connolly nodded reluctantly "Oh. Oh, I'm sorry. I do apologize."

"Well, don't get it wrong again," Rose shrugged "There's a good man. Now get to it."

"Right then," the Doctor clapped "Nice and comfy, at Her Majesty's leisure." He leaned over to Rose "Union Flag?" She settled on the sofa on Tommy's right, while the Doctor plopped down on his other side.

"Mum went out with a sailor," Rose shrugged.

The Doctor laughed, winking at the boy next to him "Oh ho ho ho. I bet she did. Anyway, I'm the Doctor and this is Rose. Tyra and Damon are over there. And you are?"

"Tommy," he replied.

"Have a look at this," the Doctor gestured "I love telly, don't you?"

Tommy smiled a genuine but small smile "Yeah, I think it's brilliant."

"Good man." The man on the TV was showing the viewers the vertebra of an ichthyosaurus or some similar dinosaur "Keep working, Mr C," the Doctor called over his shoulder "Now, why don't you tell me what's wrong?"

Mrs Connolly swallowed and glanced at her husband "Did you say you were a doctor?"

"Yes," the Doctor nodded, catching Tyra's eyes "I am."

"Can you help her?" the woman asked "Oh please, can you help her, Doctor?"

Tyra tilted her head with a frown, listening for other life signs in the house. Her head snapped up when she heard another heartbeat. She leaned forward to whisper into the Doctor's ear "There's someone upstairs. Heartbeat is unsteady… weak. I'm guessing a grandparent or something."

"Now then, Rita," Mr Connolly snapped "I don't think the gentleman needs to know."

The Doctor nodded at Tyra before glaring at the man behind her "No, the gentleman does."

"Tell us what's wrong and we can help," Rose smiled gently. She hurried over when Mrs Connolly burst into tears, comforting her "I'm sorry. It's alright. Come here… It's okay."

"Hold on a minute," Mr Connolly realised "Queen and Country is one thing but this is my house. What the…?" He threw down the bunting and puffed up in front of the Doctor "What the hell am I doing? Now, you listen here, Doctor. You may have fancy qualifications but what goes on under my roof is my business."

The Doctor stood up "A lot of people are being bundled into…"

"I am talking," Mr Connolly shouted in the Doctor's face.

"And I'm not listening," the Doctor roared back "Now you, Mr Connolly, you are staring into a deep, dark pit of trouble if you don't let me help. So I'm ordering you, sir. Tell me what's going on and who the person upstairs is."

Mr Connolly blinked in surprise "How do you…?"

"I'm clever that way," the Doctor grinned before his head snapped up at the loud thumps that sounded from upstairs."

"She won't stop," Mr Connolly shook his head in defeat "She never stops."

Tommy licked his lips nervously "We started hearing stories, all around the place. People who've changed. Families keeping it secret because they were scared. Then the police started finding out. We don't know how, no one does. They just turn up, come to the door and take them, any time of the day or night."

The Doctor breathed in deeply "Show me."

Tommy lead them up the stairs and into a dark room "Gran?" he spoke up, stepping closer to the figure in the shadows "It's Tommy. It's alright, Gran. I brought help." He turned the light on, causing Rose to flinch back a little while Damon just blinked. Tyra stared at the old woman who was missing her eyes, nose and mouth. Her whole face was just missing.

"Her face is completely gone," the Doctor breathed, scanning her with his sonic "Scarcely an electrical impulse left. Almost complete neural shutdown. She's ticking over. It's like her brain has been wiped clean."

Tommy looked at the man "What are we going to do, Doctor? We can't even feed her."

A loud crash from downstairs, startled them all as several footsteps invaded the house "We've got company," Rose murmured.

"It's them," Mrs Connolly whispered in fear "They've come for her."

The Doctor turned to the Connollys "Quickly. What was she doing before this happened? Where was she? Tell me. Quickly, think."

"I can't think," Tommy shook his head "She doesn't leave the house. She was just…"

The burly men in black burst into the room and the Doctor stepped in front of them "Hold on a minute. There are three important, brilliant and complicated reasons why you should listen to me. One…" Before he could continue, one of the men punched him in the face.

"Doctor," Rose gasped as Tyra fell to her knees behind the unconscious Time Lord.

The men threw a blanket over the old woman and pulled her out while Rose was trying to wake the Doctor. Tyra looked up at Damon "Go and follow them. Keep out of sight, alright?"

"Sir, yes, sir," Damon saluted playfully, disappearing from the room.

"Doctor," Rose called, shaking the man's shoulder.

Tyra sighed "Oh, for God's sake…" She slapped his cheeks carefully, making sure to keep it gentle.

The Doctor suddenly sat up, causing Tyra to jerk back quickly to keep from getting hit in the head "Ah, hell of a right hook. Have to watch out for that." He jumped up and ran downstairs quickly.

"I sent Damon after them," Tyra called after him "He'll keep an eye out."

"Thank you," the Doctor nodded, running out of the door "Keep an eye on the people here, would you?"

Mr Connolly looked out the front door "Get back inside," he hissed at Tommy."

"But Dad," Tommy argued "They took her."

"Don't fight it, son. Don't fight it."

Tyra stared at the two of them for a moment before she turned around when Rose called out "Tyra, come look at this."

"What is that?" she frowned, seeing the red energy coming from the television set "That doesn't look good."

Rose turned the set around when the last of the energy disappeared into the aerial connection "Magpie's…"

"Isn't that the man from earlier?" Tyra asked.

"Anyway," Tommy's voice sounded from the entrance of the living room "How did they find her? Who told them?"

Mr Connolly entered, his gaze immediately falling on the two girls "You! Get the hell out of my house."

"We're going," Rose held up her hands "I'm done." She walked past the man and nodded to Tommy "Nice to meet you, Tommy, Mrs Connolly. As for you, Mister Connolly, only an idiot hands the Union Flag upside down. Shame on you."

Tyra snorted at her dramatic exit, actually enjoying the other girl's antics for the first time in a while "Well, what can I say to that?" She stopped in front of Mr Connolly "You are despicable." Outside, Rose was leaning against the garden wall "So, Magpie's?"

"Yeah," Rose nodded "You're coming?"

"I guess so," Tyra mumbled, unsure of whether or not to trust the peace. What the hell was Rose trying?

The two girls started walking in the direction they had seen the van drive earlier "I'm going to ask him too, you know?"

"What?" Tyra blinked in confusion "Ask who what?"

"Damon," Rose pointed out "I'm going to ask him to turn me."

Tyra groaned "Are you serious? Why can't you just give it up? I told you that being a vampire won't change anything. And if anything, Damon won't change you. He doesn't like you."

"What? Why?" Rose asked.

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe because you keep acting like a bit of a bitch," Tyra shrugged "Look, I'm being honest with you here. You don't want to be a vampire. Sure, you might be able to stay with the Doctor for longer than if you're Human but it will bring more issues with it. I didn't want to be a vampire and look where that got me."

"I would be a better vampire than you," Rose smirked.

Tyra shook her head "Your emotions would be heightened and the bloodlust is overwhelming. I'm not turning you and neither is Damon. If you really want to leave your mother behind then go right ahead. Find someone to kill you but I guarantee you that you will not be happy. That and you wouldn't be able to be out during the day anyway."

"But you can," Rose huffed, crossing her arms "And you can find someone how can make me one of those rings that you need."

Tyra shook her head in annoyance "You have to stop this, Rose. I am being as patient as I could but this won't hold. I don't want to fight with you. I just want you to understand." She glared at the blonde "You're very lucky that I can actually control myself otherwise I would have killed you a long time ago."

Rose paled, stumbling back "The Doctor would hate you."

"Hm," Tyra hummed "Maybe but even he won't stop me if you don't shut up about thing you don't understand."

"So what?" Rose challenged, straightening up "You gonna compel me again?"

"No. I'm not," Tyra told her quietly, running a hand down her face "This is your last warning. I have been more patient than I have been in a while and I'm not doing this for you." With that, she turned to the store they had stopped in front of "We're here."

Rose looked at the shop and then back at Tyra "You're not the boss of me, Tyra. I do what I want and I will find a way to get what I want."

Tyra snorted "Good luck with that. I won't stand in your way if you leave me the hell alone. Do you get that?"

Rose gritted her teeth before walking through the door into the store "Oh, I'm sorry, Misses," Magpie looked up from his desk "I'm afraid you're too late. I was just about to lock the door."

"Yeah? Well, I want to buy a telly," Rose said.

"Come back tomorrow, please," Magpie murmured.

Rose tilted her head "You'll be closed, won't you?"

"What?" Magpie frowned.

"The Coronation," Tyra spoke up, staying further back by the door.

"Yes, yes," he nodded quickly "Of course. The big day. I'm sure you'll find somewhere to watch it. Please go."

Rose narrowed her eyes "Seems to me like half of London's got a television since you're practically giving them away."

"I have my reasons," Magpie stated, glancing at the screen nervously.

"And what are they?"

Tyra turned her head when she saw something appear on one of the screens out of the corner of her eye. A woman's face was showing "Hungry. Hungry."

"What the hell?" Tyra breathed at the same time as Rose stepped closer to the screen.

Rose squinted at the woman "What's that?"

"It's just a television. One of these modern programmes," Magpie shook his head nervously, eyeing the woman in fear "Now, I really do think you should leave. Right now!"

"Not until you've answered my questions," Rose demanded "How come your televisions are so cheap?"

Magpie swallowed, his heartbeat picking up in fear "It's my patriotic duty. Seems only right that as many folks as possible get to watch the Coronation. We may be losing the Empire but we can still be proud. Twenty million people they reckon will be watching. Imagine that. And twenty million people can't be wrong, eh, so why don't you get yourselves back home and get up bright and early for the big day."

"You're lying," Tyra pointed out blandly.

Rose glanced at her before turning back to watch the man closely "I'm not leaving till I've seen everything."

"I need to close."

"Mr Magpie, something's happening out there," Rose explained "Ordinary people are being struck down and changed and the only new thing in the house is a television. Your televisions. What's going on?"

Magpie walked past Rose and Tyra, locking the door "I knew this would happen. I knew I'd be found out."

"Alright, then. It's just the three of us. You going to come clean, then? What's really in it for you?" Rose fired rapidly.

Magpie grimaced weakly "For me? Perhaps some peace."

"From what?" Tyra frowned, her eyes still on the screen. The woman had been quiet. Too quiet for the fact that the sound was definitely on. Whatever that was, it wasn't a TV programmed.

He pointed to the screen Tyra was staring at "From her."

"That's just a woman on the telly," Rose dismissed "That's just a programme."

The woman grinned "What pretty girls."

"Oh, my God… Are you talking to us?" Rose questioned, moving even closer. Tyra stayed where she was, not sure what would happen but she was ready to grab Rose and run if necessary. One locked door was nothing against a vampire's strength.

"Yes," the woman nodded "I'm talking to you, little one. Unseasonably chilly for the time of year, don't you think?"

Rose frowned "What are you?"

"I'm the Wire," the Wire told her "And I'm hungry." Energy lanced out and grabbed onto both Rose and Tyra.

Tyra sank to her knees, feeling as if her energy was being pulled out of her. She groaned while Rose screamed out "Magpie, help me."

"Just think of that audience tomorrow, my dears, all settling down to watch the Coronation," Magpie pointed out "Twenty million people. Things will never be the same again." Tyra fought to get to her feet, grimacing against the pull on her face "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Help me," Rose choked out.

Tyra ran forward blindly, grabbing the other girl's waist, throwing herself against the door. She gasped when she felt something entering her shoulder but stumbled further away as soon as she felt the fresh air. It was only when she hit a wall that she lowered Rose to the ground "Shit," she cursed, seeing the lack of face. Tyra looked around the empty streets, sinking to the ground when the wave of exhaustion hit her. Why the Wire hadn't taken her face, she didn't know but it took a lot out of her.

She wasn't sure how long she had been sitting on the ground with Rose when a familiar black car pulled up next to her and the men from before got out "Get her into the car, quickly."

"No," Tyra shook her head, slurring her words. She blinked against the tiredness "The Doctor. I have to find the Doctor."

One of the men knelt down next to her "Miss, did you see what… Oh, my God…" He reached out to touch the large piece of glass and wood in the girl's body "We have to get you to a hospital."

"No, no," Tyra denied "No… Just…"

She grabbed at the object, trying to pull it out when the man stopped her "Don't. You'll bleed to death."

"Just get it out," she hissed, looking up at the man. She tried to focus on his eyes enough to compel him "Get. It. Out." The man grabbed a hold of the glass and pulled it out as quickly as he could, causing Tyra to let out a loud groan "Damn. That hurt."

"What…? How? Why did…" The man's eyes were wide as he watched the wound slowly close up.

Tyra let her head fall back before she looked to the car "Rose," she mumbled "I – I have to find the Doctor."

"You need to come with us, Miss," the man gestured to the car "We would like to ask you some questions."

"But…"

He pulled Tyra to her feet, steadying her when she swayed for a moment "I'll help you find your Doctor but you have to come with me."

"Okay," Tyra sighed. If she was right, the Doctor would be where they were going to take her anyway. At least, she hoped so.

The car ride was quiet as Tyra spent most of the time with her head leaning against the window, trying to ignore the heartbeats and the scent of blood. She was starving, even though she had a bag earlier.

"We're here. Come on," the man waved, holding out his hand to help Tyra out of the car. She looked at it for a moment before getting out without his help. Earlier, she had still been a bit uncoordinated from the Wire incident "Follow me." He lead Rose out of the car and over to a door "Found another one, sir. This time there was a witness."

Tyra saw the Doctor, ignoring the other man behind the desk when he started talking "Doctor," she breathed, wrapping her arms around his waist with her head nestled close to his throat. She inhaled deeply, feeling the veins creeping underneath her eyes before she was yanked away.

Damon turned her around by the shoulders, hiding her face from view "Tyra, don't."

"Sorry," she shook her head and looked up to see the Doctor staring at Rose "I'm sorry. I got us out too late."

The Doctor stepped towards the figure "Rose…"

"You know them?" the man behind the desk questioned, looking at Tyra "Can you tell me what happened?"

Damon leaned down "You're going to feed from me later, alright?"

Tyra nodded absentmindedly, watching the Doctor tug a strand of Rose's hair behind her ear "Er, yeah. It was that man… The one with the televisions. Magpie. There's something using the signals to take their faces," she explained "It called itself the Wire and it wants to… The Coronation. It wants to eat everything. I – I don't know more than that."

"Let's go back to Florizel Street," the Doctor spoke up, his voice flat "There's something I need to know from Tommy before we take this further."

* * *

It didn't take long until they were back in front of Tommy's house, waiting for someone to open the door. By then, day was upon them and as such the streets were practically empty. The Doctor rang the doorbell again, waiting impatiently "Tommy, talk to me," he started as soon as the boy had opened the door "I need to know exactly what happened inside your house."

Tommy looked over his shoulder before stepping out, closing the door behind him. It didn't last however when Mr Connolly stormed out angrily "What the blazes do you think you're doing?"

"I want to help, Dad," Tommy said firmly.

The Doctor stepped up "Mr Connolly…"

"Shut your face, you, whoever you are," Mr Connolly snapped "We can handle this ourselves." With that, he turned back to Tommy "Listen, you little twerp. You're hardly out of the blooming cradle, so I don't expect you to understand but I've got a position to maintain. People around here respect me. It matters what people think."

Tommy's eyes narrowed as Damon grabbed Tyra's wrist, pulling her a little way away. They could still hear everything that was going on but a hedge separating them from the Humans' view "Is that why you did it, Dad?"

"Go on," Damon whispered.

Tyra looked up at him, feeling her fangs even as she asked "Are you sure? I can… I can wait."

"No," he shook his head "I saw you fighting not to bite the Doctor earlier. You need the blood and you need it now. I don't know what happened but… You need to drink."

"Fine," she sighed, looking in the direction the Doctor was standing right behind Damon. She leaned up, wrapping her arms around the back of Damon's neck to keep her balance. Curse her small stature "Last chance."

Damon rolled his eyes "Just bite me already."

"No need to sound so desperate, " she couldn't help but tease before she bit into the side of his throat. While she was drinking, she couldn't help but look up to see whether anyone was watching them. Sure enough, the Doctor was staring at the two vampires in surprise. After a few more pulls, Tyra withdrew and licked at Damon's neck "Thanks, Day."

"Hm," Damon nodded "Anything for you, baby."

She snorted, patting his cheek "Keep dreaming, big boy."

"Oh, I will," Damon shot back with a wink. Neither of them minded their flirting. In a way, it was nice but both of them knew that they would never be more than friends. Well, they were almost siblings but there was nothing amorous between them. Tyra had never wanted them to be more than what they were because that would mean setting herself up for disappointment. Had Damon not been in love with Katherine and now the Human Doppelgänger, she might have allowed it but she was done competing with Katerina. First, she had to compete for her own brothers' attention and then she would have had to fight for Damon to love her. The former had already almost destroyed her. She did not need anything else to happen.

Tyra shook her head, returning her focus to the conversation. Tommy was just starting to rant at his father "You don't get it, do you?" he started "You fought against fascism, remember? People telling you how to live, who you could be friends with, who you could fall in love with, who could live and who had to die. Don't you get it? You were fighting so that little twerps like me could do what we want, say what we want. Now you've become just like them." Tyra walked up to Tommy, placing her hand on his shoulder. He was losing his nerve but wanted to continue, wanted to say what he had been keeping to himself for so long. It was something she could admire… Something she had always been too scared to do with her own father. Up until the point she wasn't "You've been informing on everyone, haven't you? Even Gran. All to protect your precious reputation."

"Eddie, is that true?" Mrs Connolly question, standing in the doorway.

Mr Connolly turned around and swallowed "I did it for us, Rita. She was filthy. A filthy, disgusting thing."

"She was my mother," his wife argued "All the others you informed on, all the people in our street, our friends."

"I had to," Mr Connolly stuttered "I – I did the right thing."

Mrs Connolly smiled wryly "The right thing for us or for you, Eddie? You go, Tommy. Go with the Doctor and do some good. Get away from this house, it's poison. We had a ruddy monster under this rood, right, but it wasn't my mother." She slammed the door shut in her husband's face.

"Rita," Mr Connolly shouted, hitting the door, hard.

The Doctor, who had been watching the confrontation silently, now gestured to the boy "Tommy?"

* * *

As they were walking further down the street, a few people were coming out of their houses to start setting up the street party that would be held later on "Tommy, tell me about that night. The night she changed. Tyra has seen what happened but I want to know what you saw."

"She was watching the telly," Tommy mumbled, looking up at Tyra.

The Doctor hummed "Rose said that. She guessed it straight away. Of course, she did. All these aerials in one little street."

"The shop that sold the TVs is up the road, Doctor," Tyra told him "The man we talked to yesterday. He's working with the Wire for some reason. He wouldn't really say."

"Is he, now?" Bishop frowned in suspicion.

The Doctor took a deep breath "Come on." They were by the store in less time than it took Tyra and Rose earlier. Granted, they had been talking about some unpleasant things and had walked a lot slower than normal, so it didn't really surprise Tyra. What did surprise her, though, was the state of the door.

"That looks like it hurt," Damon remarked, eyeing the mess of wood and glass.

Tyra rubbed at her shoulder "It did. Although the most painful thing was getting it out."

"It's always the worst part," Damon nodded in agreement, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. The two of them stayed outside the store while the Doctor, Tommy and Bishop walked through the destroyed doorway.

"_If you're here, come out and talk to me. Magpie,_" the Doctor shouted, looking around the store.

Tommy stepped up beside him "_Maybe he is out._"

"What's with the looks?" Damon asked suddenly.

Tyra blinked, looking up at him "What are you talking about?"

"Don't you think I haven't noticed how the Doctor is practically glaring daggers at me every time I get close to you?" he asked.

"What?" Tyra tilted her head "I honestly have no idea what you're saying."

Damon snorted "Then you're just oblivious. That guy is very much into you and I'm almost certain that you feel the same way."

"How…?"

"You're not being very subtle to someone who has known you for centuries," Damon pointed out.

"I can't," Tyra shook her head "He's my friend. Nothing more, nothing less."

Damon raised his eyebrow "I'm not sure if you're trying to kid yourself or what the hell you're trying to do but listen to me when I tell you to go for it."

"I… Damon, I'm not ready for anything of that sort even if he were interested," Tyra murmured "I don't do relationships. I told you that before."

Damon sighed "I know that you did but maybe he's worth it? Did you ever think about that?"

Tyra turned back to look through the store window, seeing the Doctor rummage through some drawers by the counter "_Oh, hello_," he murmured, pulling out a small portable television "_This isn't right. This is very much not right._" Tyra grimaced when he licked it, having given up on keeping tab of how many gross things that man has already licked "_Tastes like iron. Bakelite. Put together with human hands, yes, but the design itself. Oh, beautiful work. This is so simple._"

"I… Damon, I'm scared. I've seen what love does and I don't want that," Tyra told him, running a hand through her hair.

Damon smiled lightly "I wish I could tell you my experiences were better but you know what really happened. But I honestly can't say that I wouldn't try it again if I met someone who was worth it. Someone decidedly not Katherine. Or Elena."

Tyra wrapped her arms around his waist "You'll find someone, Damon. You just have to look."

"And you already found someone," he pointed to the Doctor who was gesturing about something frantically "There's just one thing I don't understand."

Tyra tilted her head "And what is that?"

"The blonde," he started "You've never been a pushover. Why do you let her talk to you like that?"

Tyra rubbed at her forehead violently "I'm trying not to snap. When I met the Doctor, it was one of the best things that could have happened and I don't want to do anything to ruin it. Rose won't let up about wanting to be turned." At his confused look, she waved off "Long story, don't ask. I…"

"_Good Lord,_" Bishop exclaimed, causing the two vampires to turn away from each other "_Colour television._"

The Doctor tilted his head, narrowing his eyes on the screen "_So your own people tried to stop you?_"

"_They executed me,_" the Wire spat "_But I escaped in this form and fled across the stars._"

"What is that thing?" Damon questioned, staring at the shop in confusion.

Tyra shrugged "Not a clue. But it hurts like hell, so I'll gladly stay as far away from it as I possibly can."

The Doctor's eyes darted outside, nodding towards Tyra "_And now you're trapped in the television._"

"_Not for much longer,_" the Wire smirked.

Tommy looked from the screen to the Doctor "_Doctor, is this what got my Gran?_"

"_Yes, Tommy,_" the Doctor nodded "_It fed off the electrical activity of the brain but it gorges itself like a great overfed pig, taking people's faces, their essence. It stuffs itself._"

"_Is that what she tried to do to Tyra?_" Tommy wanted to know.

Tyra raised her eyebrows at the worry in his voice. Damon smirked and poked her cheek "Looks like you make people fall for you left and right. That kid has a crush on you."

"Shut up, Damon," Tyra huffed "At least I don't keep falling for Doppelgängers."

"Ooh," he winced "Low blow…"

Tyra smirked "Well, your choices are unsurprisingly bad."

Inside the shop, Bishop gasped "_Doctor, the Coronation._"

"_For the first time in history, millions gathered around a television set. But you're not strong enough yet, are you? You can't do it all from here. That's why you need this._" The Doctor held up the portable television "_You need something more powerful. This will turn a big transmitter into a big receiver._"

The Wire sent the Doctor a sneer "_What a clever thing you are. But why fret about it? Why not just relax? Kick off your shoes and enjoy the Coronation. Believe me, you'll be glued to the screen._"

Tyra jerked when the same energy that had attacked her latched onto the three inside the shop. Damon wrapped his arm around Tyra's waist, keeping her in place "Don't. You still haven't gotten all your strength back. Look, the Doctor has a plan. Just…" She continued to struggle against him "Tyra. Stop it."

"_Hungry. Hungry. The Wire is hungry,_" the woman shouted "_Ah, this one is tasty. Oh, I'll have lashings of him. Delicious._" The Doctor started to fumble with his sonic and the Wire gasped "_Ah! Armed… He's armed and clever. Withdraw. Withdraw._" As she said that, the Wire pulled back, causing Tommy, Bishop and the Doctor to collapse to the floor "_The box, Magpie. The box. Hold tight._" The Wire zapped herself into the portable television "_Conduct me to my victory, Magpie._"

Tyra pulled Damon away from the door and into the shadows, making sure that Magpie wouldn't be able to see the two of them. They watched as he climbed into a van, driving off quickly "Come on," she murmured, falling to her knees next to the Doctor "Wake up." The Doctor opened his eyes, immediately noticing the blank face of the policeman and Damon who was trying to wake up Tommy "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Ty," the Doctor smiled lightly, reaching out to touch her face "What about you?"

She pulled him into a standing position "Sorry that I didn't help…"

He shook his head "I hoped you wouldn't, to be honest. Not after what happened earlier."

"I should apologize though," she sighed, running a hand through her hair as Damon helped Tommy to his feet "I almost bit you earlier."

Realisation dawned on his face "That's why you drank from Damon?"

"Yeah."

Tommy tilted his head "What happened?"

Tyra blinked "Oh, right. Magpie left. Sorry, I didn't think about following him."

"At least you've got the no wandering off thing down now," the Doctor grinned before hurrying out of the shop, looking up and down the street "The Wire's got big plans. It'll need… Yes, yes, yes. It's got to harvest half the population. Millions and millions of people and…" He turned to Tommy "Where are we?"

"Muswell Hill," Tommy pointed out.

The Doctor nodded thoughtfully "Muswell Hill. Muswell Hill. Which means Alexandra Palace, biggest TV transmitter in North London. Oh, that's why it chose this place. Tommy?"

"What are you going to do?" Tommy frowned in confusion."

"We're going shopping," the Doctor exclaimed, whirling around to walk back into the shop.

Tyra shrugged when Tommy turned to her "Normally it's better to just nod and go along with what he is planning."

"So, he's always like that?"

"Just about," Tyra laughed and followed the Doctor who was rooting around the store "What are you looking for?"

"This – This thing," the Doctor gestured "Kind of like a…" He tried to explain what he needed exactly but was failing miserably.

Tommy picked up what seemed to be a big valve "Is this it?"

"Perfect," the Doctor nodded, his arms laden with bits and pieces "Right, I need one more thing." He handed Tommy and Damon the collection of parts and ran outside to where the Tardis was parked. The other three followed behind him a bit slower, waiting for him to come back "Got it," he proclaimed "Let's go."

* * *

The three didn't take long to reach Alexandra Palace, the Doctor building his contraption while running through the streets. Tommy kept his eye on the transmitter by the palace, gasping when he saw a figure climbing upwards "There."

"Come on," the Doctor called out, about to run past a guard.

The guard stepped into their way "Wait, wait, wait. Where do you think…"

Damon pushed Tyra towards the Doctor "Go. I'll take care of this."

"Are you sure?" Tyra asked.

Damon rolled his eyes "Just go. I don't need a babysitter."

The Doctor grabbed Tyra's hand and pulled her along "What is he doing?" Tommy asked, glancing over his shoulder.

"He's making the guard forget about us," Tyra explained "I really like compulsion. It's so… easy."

In the control room, the Doctor gestured to the controls "Keep this switched on. Don't let anyone stop you, Tommy. Tyra will take care of any people coming in… Everything else depends on you. You understand?" Tommy nodded as the Doctor grabbed a coil of copper wire, running outside to make his way up the transmitter.

"You're holding up remarkably well," Tyra remarked, looking at Tommy who was doing what the Doctor had asked of him.

Tommy smiled lightly "This is easily the best thing that ever happened… What with my father…"

"About that," Tyra bit her lips "I'm going to give you some advice. Actually, they might be a bit pretentious because I wouldn't follow them within a million years bit… Yeah." She broke off for a moment, looking at the small screen that showed the Coronation "You should give him another chance. Tell him what you feel, what you think… He is your father and while he messed up, I don't think he is that bad of a person. He just needs to understand what he's doing to you and your mother."

Tommy looked away "You don't know how it feels," he whispered.

"I know exactly how it feels," Tyra snapped, slightly harsher than she wanted to "My father is one of those people who are a lost cause."

"What do you mean?" Tommy asked, stopping what he was doing for a moment.

Tyra closed her eyes before looking at the red energy that had crept into the room "He… He has been hunting my siblings and me for ages, abused me and two of my brothers, treated us like absolute garbage. There are a lot of reasons why I hate him but the one that I feel is inexcusable is that he blames everything he did on one of my brothers."

Suddenly, the valves blew, causing them to turn away to avoid getting hit "What do we do now?" Tommy breathed.

Tyra threw him the replacement they had brought from the shop "Use this. Hurry." Tommy worked quickly and plugged the contraption back in. A few moments later, the red energy retreated back up the mast, leaving the whole room a mess.

* * *

The Doctor strolled back into the room, looking no worse for the wear "What have I missed?"

"Doctor!" Tommy jumped up "What happened?"

"Sorted," the Doctor smiled, holding up the portable TV "Electrical creature, TV technology, clever alien life form. That's me, by the way…" He grinned, pulling Tyra into a hug "I turned the receiver back into a transmitter and trapped the Wire in here."

Tyra blinked "You… used a VCR?"

"I just invented the home video thirty years early," the Doctor pointed out smugly "Betamax. Oh, look." He turned to the screen that was showing the Coronation ceremony coming to a close "God save the Queen, eh?"

They met Damon outside before making their way back to the Yard where the men had brought the faceless people. The Doctor lead the way into a room with a cell that was holding a group of confused people, their faces restored.

* * *

Sometime later, Tyra was standing with Tommy and Damon, looking at the people celebrating their new Queen with a small smile. Tommy turned to look at her "What you told me earlier… Do you really think I should give him a chance?"

"If you think he deserves one," Tyra murmured "Just because I would gladly see my father dead… Your situation is different. Talk to him. Don't let him push you around. Just let him know how you feel when he puts you down."

"We could go down to the Mall," Rose pointed out, standing with the Doctor off to the side "Join in with the crowds."

The Doctor shook his head "Nah, that's just pomp and circumstance. This is history right here."

Tyra jerked her head in their direction, gesturing for Tommy to come along "It's a bit scary seeing you actually go for the domestic thing," she teased, nudging the Doctor's shoulder.

"Hey," the Doctor pouted.

Rose shifted, looking at the tape cautiously "That thing… Is it trapped for good on video?"

"Hope so," the Doctor shrugged "Just to be on the safe side though, I'll use my unrivalled knowledge of transtemporal extirpation methods to neutralise the residual electronic pattern." When he noticed the weird stared, he grinned "I'm going to tape over it."

"Just leave it to me," Rose snorted "I'm always doing that."

The Doctor smirked at Rose before turning to Tommy "Tell you what, Tommy, you can have the scooter. Little present. Best – er – keep it int the garage for another few years though, eh?"

Tyra rolled her eyes at him and went to open her mouth when something caught her eye. At the edge of the crowd was a familiar figure that sent a wave of terror through her "Doctor, can we leave?"

"What?"

"We need to leave. Now," Tyra repeated, keeping her eyes on the man at the other end of the street "Now!" When neither Rose nor the Doctor reacted, she whirled around, looking Damon in the eyes "Remember what I said, Tommy." With that, she made her way to the Tardis as fast as she could without looking too hurried. She practically burst through the door with the others not far behind her.

"Tyra, what's going on?" Damon asked.

By now, she was trembling "What year is it again?"

The Doctor blinked in confusion "1953." His expression changed when he took in her state and stepped closer "Why? What's wrong?" He raised his hand but froze when Tyra flinched away from him.

_Flashback_

_Tyra was six years old when she really noticed how different she was from the other girls around the village. Opposed to them, she had never been interested in braiding hair or helping her mother around the house. She had always enjoyed watching her brothers train their fighting and even snuck out to watch the warriors in the village train. Of course, they never allowed her to join them and often told her to keep quiet about her desires._

_The warriors from the village had taken to tell her stories – fantastic stories of female warriors and Valkyries. They made a joke out of putting notions into the young girl's mind, knowing exactly that Mikael wouldn't approve.  
_

_Tyra was at her spot in the woods surrounding their village, waving her sword around just like she had seen the warriors doing. It felt huge to her but thankfully wasn't too heavy. She was imagining great monsters that needed slaying, ducking and attacking the imaginary creatures. _

_After a while, she raised the hand that held the wooden sword, accidentally hitting herself in the head "Ow," she mumbled, dropping the sword to rub at her head. _

"_What do you think you're doing?" a voice boomed from behind her._

_Tyra whirled around and took an involuntary step back "Father," she stuttered out, trying to hide the sword on the ground._

_Mikael looked from the practice sword to his youngest daughter and narrowed his eyes "Do you think this is a joke, girl?" he demanded, his voice low and dangerous._

"_No… No, Father," Tyra denied, ducking her head._

"_What is this nonsense?" Mikael asked, crossing his arms. He had heard some of the stories the men in the village had told her and he had been less than impressed by them sharing such knowledge._

_Tyra looked up at him through a curtain of hair "I just wanted to be a warrior… Like you."_

_Mikael gritted his teeth "You would do well to remember your place, girl."_

"_But Father, I…"_

_She was cut off by a stinging slap to her cheek "You don't talk back to me, do you understand?"_

"_Father…" Tyra had tears in her eyes, her hand pressed to her burning cheek._

"_I won't hear it," Mikael pressed out, grabbing a hold of her hair. He dragged her along with him after grabbing the wooden sword from the ground "You will cease this foolish notion and do as you're told."_

_When they got closer to their hut, hurried footsteps came closer "Father?"_

_Mikael let go of Tyra's hair, pushing her into Finn's arms "Get her out of my sight and make sure she does her chores."_

"_Yes, Father," Finn nodded, grabbing Tyra's hand. He knew better than to check on her in front of their father, so he hurried to follow Mikael's orders._

"_Girl," Mikael called out before they were out of sight "If I ever catch you playing around with swords or any type of weapons, you'll wish you were never born." Tyra dropped her eyes and nodded "I didn't hear you."_

_Tyra sniffled "Yes, Father."_

_End Flashback_

"Really?" Rose raised her eyebrow, watching Tyra with a small glare "You couldn't just give us a few hours to enjoy a party, could you?" Tyra opened her mouth, trying to shake off the images of her father "No, it's fine. I know what the problem here is. You're a bitch, Tyra."

Tyra's eyes darkened as she shot forward, slamming Rose into the coral by her throat "What did you say to me?"

"Tyra," the Doctor exclaimed, rushing forward to separate the two of them "Let her go."

Damon was right by his side, wrapping his hands around Tyra's wrists. The action made her flinch, flashing her fangs at him "It's alright, Ty," he soothed, pulling her away slowly "Everything is fine."

Rose rubbed at her throat, watching as Damon struggled with Tyra "What the hell is your problem?" she shouted.

"Rose," the Doctor sighed as the blonde made the same mistake she had only a few minutes ago "Not now."

"Yes, now," she snapped "Tyra tried to kill me. You saw that, right?"

The Doctor scratched his head, watching as Damon continued to whisper to Tyra who seemed to be coming around "Look, I know. Just… I'll take care of it, alright?" He tilted Rose's head up to examine her throat "I can give you a salve for the bruise in a moment."

Rose nodded, feeling as if her chin was tingling in the place the Doctor had just touched "Thanks." Maybe she should tell him about Tyra threatening her. That would make him get rid of her and she could find a vampire willing to turn her. While Rose didn't know how she would find one, she knew that she had to try. If Tyra and Damon weren't willing… There had to be someone else "I'm going to my room."

"I'll bring you the salve later," the Doctor nodded, watching her walk out of the console room before he turned back to the two vampires. Tyra was sitting on Damon's lap, her face hidden in his shoulder. He had never seen her like this. She was terrified and the way she attacked Rose just then… There was something seriously wrong with her and the Doctor would be damned if he didn't get it out of her.

The Doctor knelt down in front of her, reaching out to place his hand on the small of her back "Hey," he whispered, trying to get her to look at him. Tyra twitched turning her head to blink at him "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really, no," she shook her head, her voice rough "I don't want to talk about this. Ever."

"I'm not leaving you alone until you tell me what's wrong," the Doctor told her firmly. He was surprised to see tears falling from her eyes. He had never seen her cry… Well, almost never. The only time had been after she had been eaten by the Reaper "Ty, what's this, hm?" He reached out to wipe away the tears.

Tyra burrowed back into Damon's chest who was watching the conversation attentively, ready to get Tyra away if she showed any signs of needing to be away from the Doctor "It's nothing," Tyra muttered "I'm fine."

Damon snorted "Yeah, we can see that."

"You know that you can tell me – us anything, right?" the Doctor asked.

"I really don't want to talk about it, Doctor," Tyra insisted quietly "What happened shouldn't have. I'm sorry about Rose. I don't really know why…"

The Doctor sighed "It's okay to be scared, Ty. Everyone is scared of something whether it's irrational or not." He paused to make sure the girl was listening to him "I told you about the initiation ceremony of the Academy, right? What I didn't tell you is that I – As soon as I was staring into the Schism, I ran. I was scared and I ran and I haven't stopped since. That might be cowardly but there are so many good things that came from it. Hadn't I run away, I would have never met you. I would have never seen all the wonders the universe has to offer."

"Damon, can you go?"

Damon startled for a moment before he nodded "Yeah, sure." He pressed a kiss to Tyra's forehead before moving her off of him.

After he was gone, there were a few moments of silence in which the two just sat next to each other comfortably before Tyra swallowed "Mikael," she admitted in a barely audible voice "Mikael was in the crowd."

"Your father?"

"Yeah," Tyra nodded "I – As soon as I saw him… I just… I shouldn't have made you leave or attacked Rose…"

The Doctor raised her chin "Hey, no. Don't apologise. Yes, you shouldn't have attacked Rose but it wasn't your fault. Ty, I know a Flashback when I see one. There's really nothing to be scared about. We're away from there."

"I didn't want to be weak…"

"You're not weak," the Doctor argued "Everyone is scared of something or someone and sometimes it's easier to run away."


	11. The Impossible Planet

_Flashback_

_Tyra threw herself onto Damon's bed and in effect Damon, making him grunt in surprise "What the hell?"_

_"You owe me an explanation," Tyra mumbled, raising her chin to rest on Damon's chest._

_"Do I?" Damon blinked "What explanation?"_

_Tyra looked at him curiously "Well, you weren't surprised when you saw the Tardis, you weren't surprised about the whole time and space travel thing and you weren't surprised when you could enter a house uninvited."_

_"Oh, that," Damon hummed "I'm not sure if I can tell you." He looked uncomfortable for a moment, remembering what Tyra told him before. Then again, how would she know to tell him if he didn't tell her? He frowned. This was getting complicated and he wasn't sure whether he liked it…_

_"Damon?" Tyra prompted, poking his cheek. He looked like he was in another world right there._

_Damon startled "What? Oh, right… I – We met before…"_

_Tyra's face lit up in realisation "Oh. And I told you about all that." She sent him a cheeky grin "I think I get why you were that confused right then. You were thinking about me possibly not telling you about this if you didn't tell me this right now, no? I love temporal physics. You never know what you might get. And it gave me more than one headache thinking about it already."_

_"I couldn't even begin to understand that kind of stuff," Damon snorted._

_"After over a year with the Doctor, you probably would. It's… unavoidable." Tyra made a mental note of telling Damon when she sees him next. That reminded her that she still had to copy that chapter from the Doctor's book about vampires. She should really do that sooner rather than later._

_Damon ran his hand through Tyra's hair and sighed "I'm surprised that you didn't ask more. You were always kind of nosy."_

_Tyra coughed in amusement "I know when to give up. I don't want to know what happens, to be honest. Makes life a lot less predictable and maybe I would try to change things if you told me."_

_End Flashback_

The console room was quiet when Damon entered a few days after the events in London "Doctor," he spoke up, waiting for the man to acknowledge him.

The Doctor shot up, hitting his head on the bottom of the console "Dammit," he cursed, rubbing his forehead with an annoyed expression on his face.

Damon grinned a little, making his way over to him "Sorry. I didn't mean to startle you."

"It's fine," the Doctor sighed "I should be used to this. Tyra does the same thing but… Well, I'm not."

"Oh, I'm sure that you're more than used to her already," Damon smirked, wiggling his eyebrows.

The Doctor stiffened in surprise "I don't know what you mean."

"I'm sure you don't," Damon agreed sarcastically "You know that you don't have to lie to me, right? I've seen the looks you sent her and how the two of you constantly seem to be touching in one way or another."

"What are you…?"

Damon held up his hand "Don't make a fool out of yourself by denying it. It's kind of cute how jealous you are and how Tyra is oblivious to it."

"I'm not…" the Doctor trailed off "I – I have no idea what…"

"I get it," Damon shrugged "I really do. Tyra is an amazing girl and you know that she trusts you when she opens up and becomes the person you see every day. I have known her for almost my entire life, Doctor and I know that she only pushes people away because she doesn't want to get herself hurt." When the Doctor raised his eyebrow at him, he sighed "She's like my sister. No matter whether she's older than me or not, she'll always be my baby sister. We have helped each other a lot over the years." He ran a hand through his hair, sinking down on the jump seat "I'm closer to Tyra than I am to my own brother."

The Doctor hummed "She has that sort of effect on people. I mean, I have seen her kill a werewolf and I know what she is capable of…"

"Does it really bother you, though?" Damon frowned. He liked the Doctor and no matter what he thought of himself, the Doctor was a good man. He and Tyra could be good for each other.

"Not in the way you might be thinking," the Doctor pointed out "It scares me how much I don't mind. Tyra is protective of the people she cares for and she's been hurt so badly and even though all of that happened to her, she's still this amazing person who cares. Even if she doesn't always show it." He tugged at his hair for a moment "I feel like I should be mad that Tyra attacked Rose but I can't be. I…"

"You don't have to defend yourself," Damon told him "I'm not even going to pretend that Rose wasn't at fault. Hell, if I were Tyra, I would have snapped a while ago."

The Doctor frowned "What do you mean?"

"It's not my place," Damon shook his head "It feels wrong to talk about her like this. Look, I know that Tyra does like you. She even admitted it but she's scared. Also, I think this is something new for her. Her siblings have kept her away from attention, for the most part, I think. She never told me much about them, to be honest, only how stifling it was to always be wrapped in blankets and protected from everything the world tried to throw at her."

"Yes, I got that from the talks we had," the Doctor nodded.

"Are you going to tell her?" the Salvatore asked "Because I think you should."

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair "I think I will once I figure out what exactly I feel. I mean, I'm pretty sure I know but… It takes time. I've locked myself away for so long because I never thought that someone would be able to spend my life with me after my people died…"

Damon held up his hands in surrender "I'm not rushing you. Call it encouragement. Speaking of time… Why did you take me along?"

"Because Tyra asked," the Doctor said without a moment of hesitation. That had been it, right? He wanted to make Tyra happy and the fact that she wanted Damon to come along was something he could do. Even if he had been somewhat jealous of the younger vampire. He could see now that they were good friends – close to family "Things happened in the parallel universe and… I felt like seeing you would make her feel better."

"That's all I needed to know," Damon grinned and clapped him on the shoulder "Thank you. For making her feel wanted and for allowing me to travel with you. I appreciate it."

"You're welcome," the Doctor blinked, watching the vampire walk away in the direction where he knew Tyra's room was. The Doctor tugged at his ear before shrugging his shoulders. This was easily the most bizarre talk he had in a while.

* * *

As soon as they had filed out of the Tardis, the Doctor put his hand on the wooden frame worriedly "I don't know what's wrong… She's sort of queasy. Indigestion, like she didn't want to land."

"Oh," Rose muttered in disappointment "If you think there's going to be trouble, we could always get back inside and go somewhere else."

They both started laughing while Damon and Tyra exchanged a look. Damon glanced over at them "Is this a good idea? I mean, we don't even know where we are."

The Doctor shrugged lightly "What could possibly go wrong?" He jerked his head in the direction of the door "I think we've landed inside a cupboard. Here we go."

"_Open door 15,_" the computer announced as they walked through the door to the cupboard.

"Some sort of base," the Doctor mused, looking around curiously "Moonbase, sea base, space base. They build these things out of kits."

"_Close door 15._"

Rose shifted uncomfortably when banging sounded all around them "Glad we're indoors. Sounds like a storm out there."

"_Open door 16_."

"Do you think this is a good idea? Damon murmured, leaning down to murmur into Tyra's ear.

Tyra shrugged "There's not much we can say or do against this. If the Doctor doesn't feel this… Then nothing will persuade him to leave."

Damon bit his lip and ran a hand through his hair "Then what can we do?"

"Make sure no one dies?" Tyra offered with a grimace "Maybe this won't be too bad but… Just be prepared for the worst."

"_Open door 17._"

"So you do feel it too," Damon breathed. Tyra nodded in response. Ever since they had stepped out of the Tardis, there had been this feeling… Neither of them was able to describe it. It felt like there was an oppressive presence somewhere beneath them, just waiting.

The Doctor made an excited noise at the back of his throat "Oh, it's a sanctuary base."

"_Close door 17._"

"Deep Space exploration," he continued, tilting his head to listen to the noise that was coming from underneath "We've gone way out. And listen to that, underneath. Someone's drilling."

Rose meanwhile had looked around the room before focussing on one of the walls with an amused grin "Welcome to hell."

"Oh, it's not that bad," the Doctor snorted.

"No," she laughed "Over there." The words were painted on the wall in big, bold letters with some sort of alien script underneath it.

The Doctor ran up the stairs, crouching down "Hold on, what does that say?"

"Doesn't the Tardis translate everything but Gallifreyan?" Tyra questioned, stepping closer curiously.

"Exactly," the Doctor exclaimed, pointing at Tyra "It's not Gallifreyan. And if it's not working, then it means this writing is old. Very old. Impossibly old. We should find out who's in charge." He started to spin the wheel on another of the bulkhead doors "We have gone beyond the reach of the Tardis' knowledge. Not a good move. And if someone's lucky enough…"

"_Open door 19._" Damon quickly pulled Tyra behind him when aliens with tentacles were revealed just outside the door the Doctor had just opened. They all had tubes going in behind the tentacles, carrying a white globe in their hands.

The Doctor reared back in surprise "Oh. Right… Hello. Sorry. I was just saying – er – nice base."

"We must feed," all tentacle aliens chorused.

"You've got to… what?" the Doctor blinked.

They stepped forward in sync "We must feed."

Rose pulled at the Doctor's arm "Yeah. I think they mean us." The aliens entered, causing Rose and the Doctor to back away, while Damon sped himself and Tyra to the other side of the room, making sure to keep Tyra behind him.

She rolled her eyes at him "Damon…"

"What?" he shot back, tilting his head.

He kept his eyes on the aliens, so Tyra let out an exasperated sigh "Never mind." She was more than used to guys and their stupid… cavemen behaviour.

More of those aliens stepped through the other door, surrounding the four of them while always repeating "We must feed." Just as they started to come too close, one of the tentacle things tapped his globe in confusion "You, if you are hungry."

The Doctor straightened up "Sorry?"

"We apologise," the alien said "Electromagnetics have interfered with speech systems. Would you like some refreshments?"

Tyra snorted when the Doctor started stuttering and shook her head "No, thank you."

"_Open door 18._"

A small group of people burst into the room, freezing when they saw us standing there. The older man of the group blinked "What the hell? How did…?" He stepped closer, making his way through the aliens "Captain, you're not going to believe this… We've got people. Out of nowhere. I mean, real people. I mean four living people."

"Debatable," Damon snorted under his breath from where he was still standing in front of Tyra.

"Just standing right here in front of me," the man finished, staring at the time travellers in shocked surprise.

A voice came out of the wrist computer "_Don't be stupid, that's impossible._"

"I suggest you tell them that," the man shot back.

Rose frowned "But you're sort of space base. You must have visitors now and then. It can't be that impossible."

The man tilted his head "You're telling me you don't know where you are?"

Tyra let out a small laugh, grinning at the Doctor's back "When do we ever?"

"Oi," the Doctor huffed, whirling around to face her "It's more fun that way."

Damon hummed "Yeah, not too sure about that one, Doc."

The Doctor groaned "Oh, not you too." He then pointed at Tyra accusingly "This is all your fault. You're such a bad influence."

"In more way than one," Rose breathed quietly enough do only the two vampires heard her.

All of a sudden, a woman's voice came over the tannoy "_Stand by, everyone. Buckle down. We have incoming. And it's a big one. Quake point five on its way._"

The man opened a door, gesturing for everyone to go through "Through here, now. Quickly, come on. Move."

Tyra ducked past him, keeping an eye on Damon and the others, while Damon did the same as conduits banged overhead.

"Move it," the man shouted "Come on. Keep moving. Come on… Quickly. Move it."

They burst through another room into the control room that was filled with more people working on several panels "Oh, my God," a dark-haired man breathed "You meant it."

"People," the woman from the tannoy added "Real people."

The Doctor waved with a small grin "That's us. Hooray."

"Yeah," Rose nodded "Definitely real. My name's Rose. Rose Tyler. And – and this is the Doctor, Damon and Tyra."

Another man stood up, looking at the newcomers weirdly "Come on. The oxygen must be offline. We're hallucinating. They can't be." He reached his hand out to touch Tyra's shoulder who just raised her eyebrow at him "Nope. They're real."

"You don't say," Tyra snorted.

"Come on, we're in the middle of an alert," the man in charge snapped "Danny, strap up. The quake's coming in. Impact in thirty seconds. Sorry, you four, whoever you are. Just… Hold on tight."

Rose frowned "Hold on to what?"

"Anything," the man shrugged "I don't care. Just hold on. Ood, are we fixed?"

One of the tentacle aliens – Ood inclined his head "Your kindness in this emergency is much appreciated."

Tyra held onto the railing behind her with Damon practically wrapping himself around her. She refrained from saying something, though. Since they picked him up, he had been a lot more clingy than normal.

The Doctor grabbed a hold of the railing opposite of Tyra and Damon before turning back to the others "What's this planet called anyway?"

"Don't be stupid," the older of the two women shot back "It hasn't got a name. How could it have a name? You really don't know, do you?"

"And impact."

As soon as those words were spoken, the whole place shook for a few moments but let off quicker than the dour time travellers expected "Oh, well, that wasn't so bad," the Doctor murmured, letting go of the railing as it started to shake again, this time a lot worse. The ceiling seemed lost to caving in and the consoles burst into fire. Damon flinched away from Tyra when a fire started close to where the two of them were standing.

"Okay, that's it," the first man nodded "Everyone alright? Speak to me, Ida."

"Yeah, yeah," Ida nodded breathlessly.

"Danny?"

Danny smiled shakily "Fine."

"Toby?"

"Yeah, fine," Toby answered, speaking for the first time since the new people showed up.

"Scooti?"

The younger of the two women gave thumbs up "No damage."

"Jefferson?"

"Check," Jefferson called, making use of a fire extinguisher to get rid of the fires as quickly as possible."

The Doctor straightened his suit and rolled his eyes "We're fine, thanks, fine. Yeah, don't worry about us."

"The surface caved in," the man in charge pointed out "I deflected it onto storage five through eight. We've lost them completely. Toby, go and check the rocket link."

Toby shook his head "That's not my department."

"Just do as I say," the man muttered. Toby looked at him for a moment before he hurried out of the room.

"Oxygen holding," Ida announced "Internal gravity fifty-six point six. We should be okay."

Rose laughed breathlessly "Never mind the earthquake, that's – that's one hell of a storm. What is that, a hurricane?"

Scooti raised an amused eyebrow "You'd need an atmosphere for a hurricane. There's no air out there. It's a complete vacuum."

"Then what's shaking the roof?" Rose blinked, completely confused by now.

"You're not joking," Ida breathed, looking at them in realisation "You really don't know. Fell, introductions. FYI, as they said in the olden days…"

Damon raised his eyebrows "Olden days? That makes me feel old…"

Tyra barely turned her head back "You are old, Damon. No point in denying it."

"Says the dinosaur," he laughed.

The Doctor rolled his eyes, wrapping his hand around Tyra's mouth "Shush. Adults are talking."

"Hmpf," Tyra huffed, shooting Damon a wicked look as she licked the Doctor's hand.

He jumped and let go as if burnt "Oh, gross. Really, Tyra?"

"You're no better than us. Actually, you're even more of a child than Damon or I could ever be," Tyra pointed out.

Ida cleared her through, snapping them out of their staring match "Anyway, I'm Ida Scott, science officer. Zachary Cross Flane, acting captain, sir. You've met Mister Jefferson, he's Head of Security. Danny Bartock, Ethics committee."

"Not as boring as it sounds," Danny threw in with a small grimace.

"And that man who just left, that was Toby Zedd, Archaeology. And this is Scooti Manista." Ida placed both her hands on the younger woman's shoulders "Trainee maintenance. And this? This is home." She pulled a lever.

Zach looked at the newcomers seriously "Brace yourselves," he murmured "The sight of it sends some people mad." The shutters overhead pulled back to reveal a white, hot, angry disc with a black centre and black dots falling into it.

Tyra blinked "A black hole," she started, sounded somewhat unimpressed. The crew looked over at her in confusion. She shrugged "Another thing I can cross of my non-existent bucket list. No, wait. It is on a bucket list but on the "one of things I don't ever want to see". I think a black hole would probably be on top."

"That's a black hole," Rose repeated, staring at the ceiling in shock.

The Doctor shook his head "But that's impossible."

"I did warn you," Zach shrugged.

"We're standing under a black hole," the Doctor pointed out.

"In orbit," Ida corrected.

"But we can't…"

Ida gestured up "You can see for yourself. We're in orbit."

"But we can't be," the Doctor snapped.

"This lump of rock is suspended in perpetual geostationary orbit around that black hole without falling in. Discuss," Ida explained, ending with a small smile.

Damon looked up and then back over to Tyra "I have no idea what's going on."

"What? Never studied space, did you?" Tyra teased before she shrugged "Yeah, I barely know what's happening right now either. Other than the fact that this shouldn't be possible at all and that it's probably a bit not good." She knew the basics about astrophysics but never really delved into anything that way. She much more preferred history and archaeology to finding out what was going on in the universe. Travelling with the Doctor sort of made it impossible not to pick up some useful things about other planets and the universe in general… Black holes were a different matter though.

"'A bit not good'?" the Doctor whirled around "Bad doesn't even cover it. A black hole's a dead star. It collapses in on itself, in and in and in until the matter's so dense and right it starts to pull everything else in too. Nothing in the universe can escape it. Light, gravity, time. Everything just gets pulled inside and crushed."

Rose blinked a few times, letting the explanation sink in "So… They can't be in orbit. We should be pulled right in."

"We should be dead," the Doctor shook his head.

"And yet," Ida spoke up "Here we are. Beyond the laws of physics. Welcome on board."

Rose squinted up "But if there's no atmosphere out there, what's that?" She pointed to the clouds and the dots that were being pulled in.

Tyra licked her lips "Stars, right? Those are the remains of stars?"

"Exactly," Ida nodded "Its stars breaking up. Gas clouds. We have whole solar systems being ripped apart above our heads, before falling into that thing."

Rose shifted, looking at the Doctor who was still staring up "The rocket link's fine."

Zach called up a hologram over the central console "That's the black hole, officially designated K three seven Gen five."

Ida stepped up next to him "In the scriptures of the Falltino, this planet was called Kroptor, the bitter pill. And the black hole is supposed to be a mighty demand. I was tricked into devouring the planet, only to spit it out because it was poison."

"The bitter pill," Rose hummed "I like that."

Tyra sat down on the stairs we came in through, leaning against Damon while watching the people in front of her converse and the Doctor freak out. There really wasn't much anyone could do at the moment "We're so far out," the Doctor spoke up softly "Lost in the drifts of the universe. How did you even get here?"

"We flew in," Zach explained "You see, this planet's generating a gravity field. We don't know how. We've no idea. But it's kept in constant balance against the black hole. And the field extends out there as a funnel. A distinct gravity funnel, reaching out into clear space. That was our way in."

"You flew down that thing?" Rose questioned disbelievingly "Like a roller-coaster."

Zach raised his eyebrows at the girl "By right, the ship should have been torn apart. We lost the captain, which is what put me in charge."

"You're doing a good job," Ida told him firmly.

"Yeah," Zach shrugged "Well, needs must."

Danny jumped in "But if that gravity funnel closes, there's no way out."

"We had fun speculating about that," Scooti grinned.

Danny shot her a look "Oh, yeah. That's the word. Fun."

Tyra stood up "Correct me if I'm wrong but this has all the makings of a trap. There's only one way in and out. Should it cut off, there's nothing." She turned to the Doctor "And we're on a planet that shouldn't even exist. I don't know about you but that sounds rather suspicious."

The Doctor nodded absentmindedly "That field would take phenomenal amounts of power. I mean not just big but off the scale… Can I?"

"Sure," Ida gestured "Help yourself."

One of the Ood handed Rose a tiny plastic cup that smelt bad even from across the room where Tyra and Damon were standing "Your refreshment."

"Oh, yeah," Rose smiled, taking the cup "Thanks. Thank you." She stopped the alien when it was about to walk away "I'm sorry, what was your name?"

"We have no titles," the Ood replied "We're as one."

Rose started after it and turned to look at Danny "Er, what are they called?"

"Oh, come on," Danny rolled his eyes "Where have you been living? Everyone's got one."

"Well, not me," Rose shot back "So what are they?"

Danny tilted his head "They're the Ood."

"The… Ood?"

Danny nodded "The Ood."

"Well, that's Ood," Rose joked.

"Very Ood," Danny smiled "But handy. They work the mine shafts. All the drilling and stuff. Supervision and maintenance. They're born for it. Basic slave race."

Damon shook his head and glared at Danny. He turned to Tyra "That's bullshit. Do you remember when it was African Americans and just black people in general who were 'born to be slaves'?"

"Yup," Tyra nodded "Hard not to when some people still think that… Honestly, I hated it. My siblings and I had servants. Most of them were compelled and – well, drained… so I can't say that I was much better. Still. I never liked having them around."

Rose stared at them in shock "You've got slaves?"

"Don't start," Scooti shook her head at Danny "She's like one of that lot. Friends of the Ood."

"Well, maybe I am," Rose shock back even if she didn't know what 'Friends of the Ood' were. Well, she could guess "Since when do humans need slaves?"

Tyra stepped between them, looking at Rose "It's another culture, Rose. You grew up knowing what happened with the slaves and stuff but think about it. Damon grew up in the Civil War. For him it was normal. They don't know any different, so just… Calm down."

"No," Rose hissed, trying to shove Tyra to the side "It's wrong."

Tyra let herself stumble a little before Danny reached out to steady her "The Ood offer themselves. If you don't give them orders, they just pine away and die."

Rose turned to one of the Ood who was walking past her "Seriously, you like being ordered about?"

"It is all we crave," the Ood agreed.

"Why's that then?" Rose asked.

The Ood looked at her "We have nothing else in life."

Suddenly, the Doctor straightened up, letting out a noise of triumph "There we go. Do you see? To generate that gravity field and the funnel, you'd need a power source with an inverted self-extrapolating reflex of six to the power of six every six seconds."

"That's a lot of sixes," Rose pointed out.

"Three sixes," Tyra noted "That is not at all concerning."

"And it's impossible," the Doctor added.

Zach gaped at the Doctor "It took us two years to work that out."

"I'm very good," the Doctor told him, shooting Tyra a wink.

Tyra scoffed, ending in a laugh "Is your ego bigger on the inside as well?"

Damon snorted, trying to hide it with a cough "I taught you well, little one."

"Excuse me? Who is the one who taught whom?" Tyra crossed her arms.

"I have no idea what you're trying to say," Damon blinked.

The Doctor grinned at them, shaking his head "Really, you two? Can't you at least try to act as if you're adults?"

"But that's why we're here," Ida cut them off before anyone could continue. She was getting a little annoyed at their continued bickering but on the other hand, it was amusing to watch them "This power source is ten miles below through solid rock. Point Zero. We're drilling down to find it."

Zach nodded "It's giving off readings of over ninety stats on the Blazon scale."

"It would revolutionize modern science," Ida gushed.

"We could use it to fuel the Empire," Jefferson cut in.

The Doctor looked at them "Or start a war."

"It's buried beneath us," Toby spoke up "In the darkness, waiting."

Tyra and Damon looked at each other uneasily but before either could speak up, Rose shot Toby an annoyed look "What's your job, chief dramatist?"

"Wait, what is waiting?" Tyra asked. The feeling of the presence had been spiking randomly since the quake but it still wasn't too bad. One moment it was there, the other it was gone again.

Toby shrugged his shoulders "Whatever is down there, it's not a natural phenomenon. And this – er – planet once supported life aeons ago before the Human race had even learned to walk…"

"I saw that lettering written on the wall," the Doctor spoke up curiously "Did you do that?"

"I copied it from fragments we found unearthed by the drilling," Toby nodded "But I can't translate it."

The Doctor hummed "No, neither can I. And that's saying something."

"There was some form of civilisation," Toby explained, excitement colouring his voice for the first time since they arrived "They buried something. Now it's reaching out, calling us in."

"And you came," the Doctor remarked.

Ida huffed "Well, how could we not?"

"So, when it comes right down to it, why did you come here?" the Doctor frowned "Why did you do that? Why? I'll tell you why. Because it was there. Brilliant. Excuse me, er, Zach, wasn't it?"

"That's me," Zach nodded.

The Doctor's face split into a huge grin "Just stand there because I'm going to hug you. Is that alright?"

"I… Suppose so?" Zach shrugged, looking completely flabbergasted.

"Here we go. Come on, then," the Doctor held out his arms, throwing them around Zach. Tyra snorted at him, turning to muffle her laughter in the shoulder of Jefferson who was standing next to her. The Head of Security was watching his captain and the Doctor's interaction with barely hidden amusement "Oh, human beings. You are amazing. Ha! Thank you."

"Not at all," Zach shook his head.

"Jefferson looked down "You alright there… I don't remember your name?"

"Tyra," she introduced herself again "Don't worry. And yes, I'm fine. The Doctor occasionally does weird things. It's always amusing to witness."

"Ah," he nodded "From what I've seen so far… I'm not surprised."

Tyra shrugged "That's him. Am I right, Damon?"

"Sure, whatever you say, Ty," Damon agreed without looking up from his quiet conversation with Scooti.

"Huh," Tyra mumbled, smiling a little when Damon let out a genuine laugh.

"You can talk," Ida exclaimed all of a sudden, looking at the Doctor "And how the hell did you get here?"

The Doctor scratched his head "Oh, I've got this, er, this ship. It's hard to explain. It just sort of appears."

"We can show you," Rose pointed out "We parked down the corridor from… Oh, what is it called? Habitation area…"

"Three," the Doctor finished.

Rose nodded "Three."

Zach started up at them "Do you mean storage six?"

"It was a bit of a cupboard, yeah," the Doctor shrugged before he froze "Storage six. You said… You said storage five to eight." When no one answered, the Doctor ran out with Rose hot on his heels.

Tyra was about to follow them when Damon let out a slightly confused noise. She froze, looking from the door the Doctor had disappeared through to her friend "Oh, crap," she sighed, tugging on the sleeve of Damon's leather jacket "Come here." The two of them sank down on the stairs they had been sitting on earlier.

"We should have left," Damon murmured quietly, ignoring the fact that everyone's eyes were on them "We should have told the Doctor about this feeling… There's something out there, Tyra."

"I know, Damon," she whispered "I know. But there is nothing we can do now."

"You know, I think I should be sad that I won't be seeing Stefan again but… I just can't bring myself to actually…"

Tyra snorted "From what you've been telling me about him, I can tell you that you're better off without him. Damon, when hasn't he nagged you or preached how much of a monster you are? He wants to change who you are because he's not happy with it."

Damon hummed "Yeah, I mean, I love him in my own way… But I just feel so – I don't know. I hate how he became this angsty, broody asshole."

"You know that he's wrong, right?" Tyra asked "I know you, Damon. He had no right to do what he did. And I saw you after you got out of that place. Sage loves you like family and you know that she is family to me. Ugh, what I'm trying and failing to say is that you have friends – family who love you the way you are. We don't care what you're doing as long as you stay true to yourself."

"What about Elena?"

Tyra leaned her head against his shoulder "I might not be happy about you lusting after another of those whores but… If she's really making you happy and if you think that she can accept you, then I'm happy for you." She paused for a moment, looking up at the others in the room "I've never lied to you about my hatred for Doppelgängers but for you, I'd at least meet her. You're my family as much as my siblings are."

Damon pressed a kiss to Tyra's forehead and hid his face in her hair "Damn, you're making me cry."

Tyra laughed, shoving him away from her "Asshole."

"Ty, what if we really are stuck here?" Damon questioned.

Tyra licked her lips uncomfortably "I don't know. I just… But – We can work through it either way."

The crew looked at each other before Scooti took a couple of steps closer "Are you guys alright?"

"We're as well as we can be," Damon nodded with a small smile at her "I'm sorry, though. That we got stuck here."

Zach shook his head "Well, it's not your fault… I think. I still have no idea how you actually got here."

"Yeah, don't think about it too much," Tyra advised "Trust me, the headache isn't worth it."

"Since you two are here now," Ida spoke up "Is there anything you would be interested in doing here? We don't really know what to do with the four of you but… Maybe we can find something you'll enjoy."

Tyra looked up at Damon "Well, to be honest, I'd love to see what Toby is working on? I always loved history and Archaeology and travelled around quite a lot, learning whatever I could. If there is anything you want to know about Earth starting from the 10th century up to the 21st then you're very welcome to ask me."

Toby looked up in surprise "Erm, yeah, sure. I – I don't mind."

"The ground gave away," the Doctor shook his head as soon as him and Rose entered the control room again "My Tardis must have fallen down right into the heart of the planet. But you've got robot drills heading the same way."

Zach raised his eyebrows "We can't divert the drilling."

"But I need my ship," the Doctor argued "It's all I've got. Literally the only thing."

"Doctor," Zach spoke up slowly, sounding sympathetic "We've only got the resources to drill one central shaft down to the power source and that's it. No diversions, no distractions, no exceptions. Your machine is lost. All I can do is offer you a lift if we ever get to leave this place and that is the end of it."

Ida shifted "I'll, er, put you on the duty roster. The two of you can work in laundry." She looked at Damon "I'm putting you with Jefferson if that's alright? You seem like you know your way around a weapon."

With that, they all left the room. Toby stopped before he was out, turning to Tyra "I'm going to check out some of the stuff we found. Would you – er – would you like to see?"

"Sure." Tyra got up, wrapping her arms around the Doctor for a moment "It's alright. I know it doesn't seem that way at the moment but we're still alive. That's better than nothing. We'll figure out the rest as time passes. Who knows? Maybe the Tardis shows up again. She does have the habit of popping up out of nowhere sometimes."

The Doctor caught her arm "Ty?"

"I don't blame you," Tyra told him quietly, ruffling his head "I really don't. And neither does Damon for that matter. You know that I would never blame you for something like this."

* * *

Toby gestured to his bunk bed "You can sit… If you want."

"Thanks," Tyra smiled "I don't bite, you know."

"Sorry," he winced "Is it that obvious?"

Tyra let out an amused laugh "It is. Don't worry about it, though. No harm done."

Toby let out a breath and relaxed, looking down at the scroll "Here. This is what we have… I can't translate any of it but I'm really hoping for a breakthrough." Tyra got up to look over his shoulder curiously. Toby was holding one of the scroll fragments beneath the magnifying glass, showing Tyra the symbols written on them. The feeling of the foreign presence got stronger, urging her to reach out and touch the pieces but Tyra stopped herself before she could even lift her hand.

Suddenly, Toby straightened up, a strange look on his face "Toby?" Tyra asked, hesitating a little "Are you alright?"

"Can you hear that?" he asked in a hushed tone."

Tyra tilted her head, listening for what he was apparently hearing "There are whispers. Nothing that I can make out though," she told him "Why? What do you hear?"

"Nothing," Toby blinked, shaking his head "It's nothing. Sorry about that. It's been a long day."

Tyra patted his shoulder and went back to sit on the bed, leaning back to look at the ceiling. She was listening to Toby's vitals intently. There was something wrong with him and whatever it was, it wasn't good "What do you think is going on here?" she asked "You said that something was hiding in the darkness… Damon and I have…." She was cut off by frantic rustling and choking "Toby?" Tyra stared at him in shock. Symbols were covering his face and hands, his eyes having turned a deep shade of red "What are you?" Toby fell to the ground, unconscious. His heart was spluttering, missing beats here and there. Tyra fell to her knees next to him "Toby? Come on, I don't know what's going on…."

She let out a small gasp and scrambled away when Toby's eyes snapped open as soon as his heart stopped. He stood up, tilting his head at her, his face still covered in symbols.

"What are you?" Tyra demanded, narrowing her eyes on Toby.

The creature stepped towards her, reaching out for Tyra. She caught its wrist, twisting it and throwing Toby against the wall with as much force as she could. There was the snap of his neck but that barely seemed to slow him down. Whatever was inside Toby reached out his hand, flinging it to the side, causing Tyra to crash through the door and into the wall opposite of Toby's room. She shot up, looking at Toby who was collapsing back onto the ground, the symbols now slowly disappearing from his skin "What the hell?" she whispered and ran off to find the other.

* * *

The Doctor stared after Tyra when she left the room, surprised at her words. He really couldn't tell why he was surprised in the first place. This was so like Tyra to not blame him for messing everything up. He looked at Damon "I'm really sorry, Damon."

Damon sat down next to the Doctor and nudged his side "She didn't say that to make you feel better," he started "Ty means it. She doesn't blame you for this and I don't either. What happened isn't your fault."

"But I've trapped you here," the Doctor muttered, his head in his hands.

Rose shook her head at him, not sure whether she should be annoyed at Tyra's display from earlier "No, don't worry about us." The base shook some more and Rose swallowed nervously "Okay, we're on a planet that shouldn't exist under a black hole and no way out. Yeah, I changed my mind. Start worrying about me."

"You're not helping," Damon muttered into her ear when he got up "Come on, let's see what the others are up to."

The Doctor clapped his hands, throwing another look at the black hole that was still showing over their heads "Let's go." He lead the way back to Habitation Three with Damon walking just behind him "Are you alright? I'm sorry I didn't ask before but…"

"Hey, I get it," Damon shrugged "And I'm fine. Tyra just told me some home truths. I – You know, she is my family and I'm closer to her than my own brother. Since she's here… I can get over this. Being stuck here. It's not the worst thing that could have happened."

The Doctor sighed "I feel like she would rip me a new one if she was here right now." That made him think of who she went with "Why did she go with Toby anyway?"

"She loves history and archaeology. Whenever something big happened, she was usually there… Or at least nearby," Damon told the other man "I'm sure you've noticed. She is just as interested in this as you are even if she might not get all the technical stuff…"

Rose glared at their backs, trying so hard not to interrupt them. Why was it always Tyra? What made her so amazing? She just didn't understand. Tyra was a monster and she even admitted to murdering people and even killed in front of the Doctor. How could he just ignore that? She had been trying to get Damon to talk to her alone since she talked to Tyra in London. Not that it had worked. It seemed as if the other vampire already knew what she was trying to do and avoided her whenever he could. Whether that was spending time with Tyra or talking to the Doctor. Considering the fact that the Doctor had glared at Damon all the time not too long ago, she didn't understand how the two of them were getting along now. It was weird. Normally, the Doctor didn't change his opinion easily and she thought that she didn't like Damon for his attitude towards killing and the fact that Tyra taught him how to screw people over. Nothing of this made any sense to Rose but she kept quiet for now. This wasn't something she needed the Doctor to know.

As soon as the group of three got to Habitation Three, the Doctor walked over to continue examining the alien script that Toby had painted on the walls. Rose, on the other hand, went to get herself something to eat while Damon went over to talk to Scooti who had her tray already. Scooti turned to Rose with a grin "Help yourself. Just don't have the green." She went to walk away before stopping "Or the blue."

Rose took her tray to the serving window after blinking at Scooti who had started laughing at something Damon said to her "Er, bit of that, thanks."

"Would you like sauce with that?" the Ood in the window questioned.

"I'll have a go, yeah," Rose nodded unsurely "I did that once. I was a – a dinner lady. Not that I'm calling you a lady. Although, I don't know, you might be. Do you actually get paid, though? Do they give you money?"

The Ood picked up his communicator "The Beast and his Armies shall rise from the Pit to make war against God."

Rose gaped at the tentacle alien in shock "I'm sorry?"

"Apologies," the Ood inclined his head "I said, I hope you enjoy your meal."

It was a little while later that Damon looked up from his conversation with Scooti. She was easily one of the cutest girls he had met in a while and smart as a whip. Nothing like Elena and not like Katherine either. From their talks before, he wouldn't mind getting to know her more. It only took him a second to realize that Tyra still wasn't here which worried him a little "You're worried about your friend, aren't you?" Scooti asked him quietly.

Damon nodded lightly "She can take care of herself but… It doesn't mean that I don't still want to protect her."

"Well, she is younger than you, so that's…"

"Oh, actually… Ty is older than she looks," Damon shrugged "She might look like a kid but she really isn't."

Scooti blinked "How old is she?"

Damon rubbed the back of his neck "I don't actually know. She never told me."

"Well, don't worry," Scooti nudged him "Toby loses track of time sometimes. I'm sure they're both fine."

At that moment, Damon was hit with a huge wave of the weird feeling. It was as if that something had just entered the base and was closer than ever. He let out a low gasp. Scooti was about to open her mouth to ask him whether he was alright when the lights flickered. Ida looked up "Zach? Have we got a problem?"

"_No more than usual,_" Zach responded immediately "_Got the Scarlet System burning up. Might be worth a look._"

Ida went over to the lever and turned to the others in the room "You might want to see this. Moment in history." She opened the shutters "There. On the edge. That red cloud. That used to be the Scarlet System. Home to the Peluchi, a mighty civilisation spanning a billion years, disappearing forever. Their planets and suns consumed. Ladies and gentlemen, we have witnessed its passing."

When she went to shut the shutters again, the Doctor stopped her "Er, no, could you leave it open? Just for a bit." Ida hesitated for a moment "I won't go mad. I promise."

"How would you know?" she raised her eyebrow but took her hand from the lever "Scooti, check the lockdown. Jefferson, sign off the airlock seals for me."

Damon got up as well, walking through the door with Jefferson. From the look he had gotten from Rose, he really didn't want to be anywhere near the girl while she tried to throw herself onto the Doctor. Tyra might not want to admit to it and neither did the Doctor but the two were into each other, no matter what they were trying to tell him. Damon cursed both of them for being stubborn idiots but there was nothing he could do.

* * *

When Tyra was on her way back to Habitation Three, the base started shaking violently, almost as bad as it had done the first time. Tyra stopped for a moment when she could make out Zach's voice "_Everyone, evacuate eleven to thirteen. We've got a breach. The base is open. Repeat, the base is open._" Tyra started moving faster, taking the turns quickly. She had no idea where eleven to thirteen were, so she was a little cautious about where she was going.

As soon as she got close to where she remembered Habitation Three being, she heard footsteps and familiar voices "Everyone alright?" the Doctor called out "What happened? What was it?"

"_Oxygen levels normal,_" the Computer announced.

Jefferson was the one who answered the Doctor "Hull breach. We were open to the elements. Another couple of minutes and we'd have been inspecting that black hole at close quarters."

"That wasn't a quake," the Doctor pointed out "What caused it?"

"_We've lost sections eleven to thirteen,_" Zach said "_Everyone alright?_"

"We've got everyone here except for Scooti and – what was her name? Tyra?" Jefferson spoke up, letting his eyes trail over the group before him.

"I'm here," Tyra said, walking over to them.

The Doctor whirled around, seeing her ruffled appearance and pulled the girl into his arms "Where have you been?"

She caught Toby's eyes over the Doctor's shoulder and sneered at him. There was something seriously wrong here and even if he looked normal now, there was no way that thing was just gone. Especially since Toby is walking around without a heartbeat. He wasn't breathing either and when the symbols bled back onto his skin for a brief second, she pulled away "I'll tell you later."

"Scooti?" Jefferson called into his wrist device "Scooti, report. Scooti Manista? That's an order. Report."

"_She's alright,_" Zach assured them "_I've picked up her biochip. She's in Habitation Three. Better go and check if she's not responding. She might be unconscious. How about that, eh? We survived._"

Jefferson looked down the corridor and sighed "Habitation Three. Come on. I don't often say this but I think we could all do with a drink. Come on."

"What happened?" the Doctor asked Toby, kneeling down in front of him.

Toby shook his head shakily "I don't… I don't know. I was working and talking to Tyra and then I can't remember… All that noise. The room was falling apart. There was no air."

Damon wrapped his arm around Tyra's shoulders when he saw her staring at Toby "Come on. Let's get you a drink. You look like you need it."

"Where were you when this happened?" the Doctor asked Tyra, turning away from Toby as they walked in the direction of Habitation Three.

Tyra shook her head "I was coming back here. But I got lost a few times… Doctor, there…"

Ida was already in Habitation Three when they entered "I've checked Habitation Four. Can you hear me?"

"There's no sign of her," Jefferson murmured "The biochip says she's in the area. Have any of you seen Scooti?"

Toby shook his head "No, no, no, I don't think so."

Tyra still watched him from the other end of the room, trying to see whether the creature was still in him. It had to be… If she hadn't known what happened in his quarters, she wouldn't have noticed the glint in his eyes. He – It had something to do with Scooti's disappearance. That much she was sure of.

"Nowhere here," Jefferson sighed "Zach? We've got a problem. Scooti's still missing."

"_It says Habitation Three,_" Zach told them, sounding puzzled.

Jefferson rolled his eyes "Yeah, well, that's where I am and I'm telling you that she's not here."

"I've found her," the Doctor spoke up quietly, staring at the glass ceiling with sorrow in his eyes. Everyone turned their eyes up, looking through the open shutters to see Scooti drifting towards the black hole. She was completely blue from the lack of oxygen, her hair flying around her head like a halo.

"Oh, my God," Rose breathed, her hand coming up to cover her mouth.

Tyra felt a hand grab hers and looked over to see Damon "You liked her, didn't you?"

Damon shook his head "She had a lot of potential. Why does this always happen?"

"Yeah, that's a good question," Tyra whispered before she licked her lips "Listen, Damon, I have to talk to the Doctor about something…" She squeezed his hand before walking over to where the Doctor was standing, staring at the ceiling.

The Doctor looked down as soon as Tyra had stopped next to him, frowning at her uncomfortable expression "What's wrong?"

"I have to talk about something," she whispered in a hushed tone while Ida and Jefferson were talking to Zach "It's about earlier."

"Tell me," the Doctor nodded after pulling her to the side a little.

Tyra shifted uncomfortably "Toby is dead," she started and quickly continued when the Doctor's face morphed into a confused expression "I don't know what's going on but whatever that thing over there is… It isn't Toby anymore. It was freaky. He was studying the fragment pieces he found and then it was like he was possessed. His whole skin was covered in the same symbols as on the wall and his eyes were red."

"But he's back to normal now," the Doctor pointed out "At least he seems normal."

Tyra shook her head "His heart isn't beating and he's not breathing. That's not all." She tugged at her hair harshly before the Doctor reached up to loosen her hands "Ever since we stepped out of the Tardis, Damon and I had these feelings… We didn't say anything because it's hard to describe. I don't know what it is but it has something to do with what happened to Toby. It feels old… Like being hit by a sledgehammer."

"Okay," the Doctor breathed out, his hand rubbing over his head, making his hair stand up in every direction "Okay… Keep an eye on him and tell Damon to do the same."

Tyra nodded "Will do."

"What was that?" Rose tilted her head as the base fell silent "What was it?"

"The drill," the Doctor spoke up, turning back towards the others in the room.

Ida let out a shaky breath "We've stopped drilling. We've made it. Point Zero."

* * *

As soon as they got to the drilling area, Ida got ready to go down. When Tyra saw that the Doctor had grabbed a suit as well, she walked over "You're not going alone."

"Ty, it could be dangerous," the Doctor spoke up, trying to talk her out of it.

She raised an eyebrow "Who is the almost immortal here?" she asked "Look, Damon is going to stay here with the others and I'm going to have him keep an eye on Toby…" Before Tyra could move, she saw Rose approaching him and winced at the look that settled on Damon's face "One of us with each group. I will not let you or Ida die if I can help it. We both know that you're a danger magnet."

The Doctor sighed "I won't be able to talk you out of this, will I?"

"Nope," she shook her head, grabbing another suit off the hooks. There were only three, so she wasn't sure who should have gone down originally but she'd be damned if she let anyone else die without at least trying to stop it. As she was changing, she kept an ear on Rose and Damon, trying not to cringe at the tone Damon had adopted as soon as Rose had started talking. She would never give up, would she? Why it was so important to Rose, Tyra would never understand. Had she still been Human, there was no way she would have thrown that away. Not for a man and certainly not if her family was still mortal.

* * *

Damon was leaning against the wall in the drilling area, trying not to blame himself for Scooti's death. He knew that he probably couldn't have done anything even if he had been with her at the time… It didn't mean that he didn't feel bad. The woman had been so young… If Stefan could see him now, he would probably accuse him of not being Damon. He hated to pretend that he didn't care but from experience, hr knew that Stefan would only hurt him again if Damon let him.

"Hey, can I talk to you for a moment?" Rose asked, smiling up at Damon.

Damon barely withheld a groan "Sure. What's up?"

"There's something I wanted to ask you." She batted her eyelashes a little "Since you're… you know, I was wondering whether you could – Maybe turn me?"

Damon snorted "You're joking, right? Weren't you the one who told me that Tyra and I were monsters?"

"Yeah, well… You are," Rose sniffed.

"And you think that becoming a vampire makes you a monster," Damon continued "Yet, you want to be one? Why?"

Rose couldn't stop her eyes from straying to the Doctor "Does it matter? Why won't you just turn me?"

"Because I know Tyra," Damon pointed out, his voice getting lower and more pissed "I know that she said no. She told me why you want to become a vampire. I'm not going to turn you, blondie."

Rose reached out to put her hand on Damon's chest "Why not? Don't you think we…"

He grabbed her wrist tightly "Let me stop you there. I'm not interested in you. Tyra won't turn you and neither will I."

"Why is she always acting like she is the best?" Rose grumbled under her breath, completely forgetting that Damon wasn't the only vampire. Maybe she would have been more careful if she knew that Tyra was listening to every word they were saying "I really don't understand why people are so protective over her. She's a bitch."

Damon smirked "Well, so are you. And Tyra is a hundred times the person you are. She, at least, is genuine. Honestly, I have no idea why she hasn't killed or compelled you yet but I'll honour her wishes for now. I don't have as much patience as Tyra, though, so don't mess with me." He looked down at the blonde, her wrist still in his hand "You're not going to be a vampire if I have any say in this. Just… No."

* * *

"Are you ready?" the Doctor asked, looking over at Tyra.

She saw Rose walking over to them out of the corner of her eyes "Yeah. I'm just going to let Damon know what to do really quick. I'll be back in a minute."

"Sure," the Doctor nodded before he noticed Rose when Tyra walked past him.

Damon had his fists clenched when she stopped next to him "You good?" she asked.

"Knowing and experiencing her is something really different. I know you listened to every word of this… How do you deal with her?" Damon demanded.

Tyra shrugged "Honestly, I just try to ignore her. I mean, I'm not sure how much longer I'll actually keep my mouth shut but so far I haven't attack… snapped… Okay, so maybe I did but I haven't killed her yet. She's been looking down at me ever since she found out that I was a vampire. She just got worse and pushy when we met one of the Doc's old Companions."

"Does she really think that she could lead a normal life as a vampire?" Damon questioned "It took me years to gain enough control to not rely on compulsion every time I messed up."

"Apparently," Tyra huffed "Rose actually implied that she would be able to handle the bloodlust and that she would have no problem with it at all." She shook her head with a wry grin "This wasn't what I wanted to talk to you about, though. You're staying up here with them and I want you to know something…" With those words, she lowered her voice "Keep an eye on Toby for me? There is something seriously wrong with him."

Damon's eyes strayed to the man in question who was sitting on the ground not too far away "I noticed it too. Just after we found him. He's a dead man walking… What happened in his quarters?"

Tyra shook her head "I'll tell you once we survive this."

Damon nodded and jerked his head towards the Doctor "I think he might need rescuing."

Tyra turned in confusion and snorted when she caught the Doctor's pleading look while he was trying to pry Rose off him "Do you think I should help? This is amusing to watch. You should have seen his face when Rose was possessed and kissed him."

"Don't be mean," Damon grinned, nudging her side "Go and help the poor guy."

"Fine, fine," she grumbled in mock annoyance and made her way over to the Doctor "I think Ida is ready to go down."

The Doctor slumped in silent relief when Rose let go of him and handed Tyra a helmet. He didn't understand how Rose's hugs felt so different. He felt like she was trying to suffocate him, while Tyra merely felt like a gentle hug, a comforting presence that was stronger the closer he was to it. It made him want to never let go of her. He grabbed Tyra's hand and dragged her over to Zach "Reporting as volunteers for the expeditionary force."

Zach looked at the Doctor and then to Tyra "Doctor, this is breaking every single protocol. We don't even know who you are."

"Yeah, but you trust me, don't you?" the Doctor questioned with a knowing smile "And you can't let Ida down there on her own. Go on. Look me in the eye. Yes, you do. I can see it. Trust."

Tyra rolled her eyes "Are you trying to sound like a serial killer? Cause there were definite vibes of that…"

"Tyra," the Doctor groaned.

Zach snorted in amusement before his smile fell and he turned serious "I can't let you go down. I should be the one to go…"

"You're the captain, Zach," Tyra pointed out "They need you here. In charge. I'll make sure that Ida gets out of this alive. Even if I have to die for her… Not like that would be the first time." He blinked at her and opened his mouth to ask "Maybe you'll find out, maybe you won't. But seriously. Damon and I will do out best to protect you and your crew. I give you my word on that." Those words made her grimace. How did she manage tot sound so much like Elijah just then?

"Not much good at it, am I?" Zach sighed, dropping his head "Positions. We're going down in tow. Everyone, positions. Mister Jefferson. I want maximum system enhancement."

The Doctor checked his suit and then looked over Tyra's, pointing out the different displays "Oxygen, nitro balance, gravity. Oh, it's been ages since I wore one of these."

Before Tyra put on her helmet, Damon pressed a kiss to her head "Be careful down there."

"I will… Look after them," she told him before securing the helmet, joining the Doctor and Ida in the capsule.

"_Five, four, three, two, one,_" Zach counted down over the Comms "_Release._" The capsule lowered down on its cable and Tyra leaned her head back, closing her eyes. It was a weird feeling to be wearing the suit especially since she had never worn one of those before "_You've gone beyond the oxygen field. You're on your own._" The three inside the capsule turned on their life support.

"_Don't forget to breathe,_" Rose pointed out over the Comms "_Breathing's good._"

Zach let out a noise that was a mix between annoyance and amusement "_Rose, stay off the Comms._"

"_No chance,_" Rose laughed.

When the capsule shuddered even more and dropped, Tyra stumbled and crashed into the Doctor's chest.

"_Doctor?_" Rose called out urgently, her hand clenching around the microphone in her hand "_Doctor, are you alright?_"

"_Ida, report to me. Doctor? Tyra?_" Zach asked immediately after Rose had finished speaking.

The Doctor steadied Tyra gently before speaking up "It's alright. We've made it. Getting out of the capsule now."

"_What's it like down there?_" Damon asked, having grabbed the Comms unit from Rose.

"It's hard to tell," the Doctor murmured, looking around the near darkness "Some sort of cave… Cavern… It's massive."

Ida pulled something out of the capsule "Well, this should help. Gravity globe." She threw up the ball and illuminated the cavern "That's – That's… My God, that's beautiful."

"Eh," Tyra shrugged with a teasing grin in her direction "I've seen better." She looked at Tyra before rolling her eyes, a smile playing on her lips.

"Rose, you can tell Toby that we've found his civilisation," the Doctor said, inspecting the wall of the cavern where pillars and statues were carved into the stone.

Tyra jobbed over to one of them, standing in the archway and looked up "I feel tiny…"

"You are tiny," the Doctor pointed out "Now you just look… Tinier."

"I hate you," Tyra huffed with a playful pout.

"_Concentrate now, people,_" Zach sighed "_Keep on the mission. Ida, what about the power source._"

Ida looked at the device in her hand "We're close. Energy signature indicates north-north-west. Are you getting pictures up there?"

"_There's too much interference. We're in your hands,"_ Zach denied.

Ida closed her eyes "Well, we've come this far… There's no turning back."

"Oh, did you have to?" the Doctor groaned, catching up to the two women "No turning back? That's almost as bad as this is going to be the best Christmas Walford's ever had…"

"Or nothing can possibly go wrong," Tyra chimed in.

Ida raised her eyebrow "You two done?"

"Not even close," Tyra smirked "But do go on."

"Thank you," Ida scoffed.

* * *

"_Captain, sir,_" Danny spoke up, his voice a little higher than normal as he was staring at the Ood in front of him "Something is happening_ with the Ood._"

Zach groaned. Nothing could possibly go wrong, indeed… "_What are they doing?_"

"_They're staring at me,_" Danny said "_I've told them to stop but they won't…_"

"_Danny, you're a big boy,_" the captain mocked lightly "_I think you can take being stared at._"

Danny grumbled "_But the telepathic field, sir. It's at basic one hundred. I've checked, there isn't any fault. It's definitely one hundred._"

Zach froze at the monitor and shook his head "_But that's impossible._"

In the drilling area, Rose turned to the others "What's basic one hundred mean?"

"_They should be dead,_" Danny replied.

Jefferson looked at the Ood around him warily "Basic one hundred is brain death."

"_But they're safe?_" Zach questioned urgently "_They're not actually moving?_"

Danny looked at the Ood in the hold "_No, sir._"

Zach nodded to himself in the control room "_Keep watching them. And you, Jefferson?_ _Keep a guard on the Ood._"

"Officer at arms," Jefferson commanded, pointing to the guards.

The crewman saluted "Yes, sir._"_

Rose stared at them as if they were crazy "You can't fire a gun in here. What if you hit a wall?"

"I'm firing stock fifteen," Jefferson explained with a roll of his eyes "It only impacts upon organics. Keep watch. Guard them." There were at least three Ood that Damon could see but it was a possibility that there were more. He turned his attention from the Comms to the Ood and the walking dead at his feet. Making Blondie's life hell would have to wait for a while. He would give Tyra a little gift later but for now, he was going to help the – still alive – people in here to actually stay alive.

* * *

They had been exploring the cavern, keeping an ear on what was happening above them. There wasn't a lot that was directed at them, so the only thing they really got was that something had happened with the Ood.

"Is everything alright up there?" the Doctor asked, narrowing his eyes in worry.

Rose answered immediately "_Yeah, yeah._"

"_Great,_" Danny agreed sarcastically.

The Doctor, Ida and Tyra walked through the archway between two massive pillars into an area with tons of rubble and a huge round decorated door in the floor "We've found something," the Doctor remarked "It looks like metal. Some sort of seal. I've got a nasty feeling the word might be trapdoor. Not a good word, trapdoor. Never met a trapdoor I liked."

"There are few good trapdoors," Tyra agreed "Although the one Jack found in…"

"Ooh, yeah," the Doctor nodded "I forgot about that one. Yeah, that was definitely a good one."

Ida shook her head at them. They seemed to get distracted a lot… She stepped closer to the metal trapdoor, leaning over to take a closer look "The edge is covered with those symbols," she reported.

"_Do you think it opens?_" Zach questioned.

The Doctor hummed "That's what trapdoors tend to do."

"Trapdoor doesn't cover it," Ida pointed out "It's massive, Zach. About thirty feet in diameter."

"_Any way of opening it?_" Zach inquired.

They looked around the rubble, not seeing anything that would help them to open it "I don't know," Ida shrugged "I can't see any sort of mechanism."

"I suppose that's the writing," the Doctor mused "It'll tell us what to do. The letters that defy translation."

Tyra grimaced "If it's the letters that will tell us, I really don't want to know. They're giving me to creeps."

Zach's voice sounded again, speaking words that made Tyra shudder. She felt as if the question wouldn't end well "_Toby, did you get anywhere with decoding it?_"

* * *

Rose turned to the man on the floor at Damon's feet. Damon had stiffened more when he felt the presence wash over him, stronger than ever "Toby, they need to know that lettering. Does it make any sort of sense?"

"I know what it says," Toby admitted.

"Then tell them," Rose urged.

Jefferson narrowed his eyes on the man in suspicion "When did you work that out?"

Rose shot the Head of Security an annoyed look "It doesn't matter, just tell them."

Damon grabbed her, practically throwing her away from Toby when he looked up, covered in symbols with red eyes "These are the words of the Beast. And he has woken. He is the heart that beats in the darkness. He is the blood that will never cease. And now he will rise."

"Officer, stand down," Jefferson ordered, his gun on Toby "Stand down."

"_So it was the Beast who we felt," _Tyra mused over the Comms "_Damon…_"

Damon shot the speaker an annoyed look "Yes, yes. I know."

"_What is it?_" the Doctor questioned "_What's he done? What's happening?_"

Zach was clutching the edge of the controls tightly "_Jefferson? Report. Report._"

The Head of Security stared at his colleague with wide eyes. This was something you didn't see every day. One glance at the raven-haired man close to him revealed that he wasn't surprised. Before Jefferson could really question that, he shook his head. It wasn't important right now… "Officer, as Commander of Security, I order you to stand down and be confined. Immediately."

"He's covered in those symbols," Rose spoke into the Comms "All over his face. They're all over him."

Toby grinned up at Jefferson "Mister Jefferson. Tell me, sir. Did your wife ever forgive you?"

Jefferson froze "I don't know what you mean."

"Let me tell you a secret," the Beast taunted "She never did."

Damon looked from Jefferson to the thing "Oh, can you just shut up? It's getting annoying."

The Beast tilted his head "What are you going to do?"

"Under the strictures of Condition Red, I am authorised to shoot you," Jefferson stated, tightening his grip on the gun.

"But how many can you kill?" Toby opened his mouth, causing the symbols to leave him and float over to the Ood who jerked to attention.

"_We are the Legion of the Beast,_" every Ood chorused, causing everyone inside the base to shiver. This was bad. Very, very bad.

"_Rose? Damon? What is it, Damon? I'm going back up,_" the Doctor called, storming back to the capsule with Tyra and Ida hot on his heels.

Zach was on the edge of his seat "_Report. Report! Jefferson, report. Someone, report._"

"_The Legion shall be many and the Legion shall be few,_" the Ood announced.

Rose swallowed "It's the Ood," she spoke into the microphone.

"Sir, we have contamination in the livestock," Jefferson added.

"Doctor, I don't know what it is," the blonde sniffed "It's like they're possessed.

Damon snatched the microphone out of her hands "Ty… It was red eyes, right? The symbols and red eyes?"

"_Erm, yes,_" the Original nodded in agreement, avoiding Ida's curious look.

"_What are you two talking about?_" Zach demanded.

Before someone could answer, the Ood spoke again "_He has woven himself in the fabric of your life since the dawn of time. Some may call him Abaddon. Some may call him Kroptor. Some may call him Satan or Lucifer._"

Danny stared at the twenty or more Ood underneath him with fear and panic "_Captain, it's the Ood. They're out of control._"

"_Or the Bringer of Despair,_" they continued "_The Deathless Prince, the Bringer of the Night._" One Ood walked up the steps to the catwalk, releasing its globe. It flew towards one of the guards just behind Danny, electrocuting him "_There are the words that shall set him free._"

Jefferson stepped backwards, herding the others to the door while keeping his gun on the Ood "Back up to the door."

"_I shall become manifest,_" the Ood said "_I shall walk in might. My Legions shall swarm across the worlds._"

Damon looked from the Ood to the humans that were under his protection and back. He squeezed his eyes shut before darting forward, knocking out as many Ood as he could before anyone could blink. In under a second, all the Ood in the room were on the ground, not moving an inch "Let's get out of here."

"How?" Jefferson breathed.

"Does it matter?" the vampire snapped in annoyance, ignoring Rose's incredulous gaze "We have to go."

* * *

Tyra whirled around when she heard metal grinding on metal and started running back to the room where the trapdoor was "This is bad," she breathed. The centre of the trapdoor sunk down as the ground shook violently.

"Doctor," Ida called from behind Tyra "It's opening…"

"_We're moving,_" Zach shouted into the Comms "_The whole thing's moving. The planet's moving._"

The Doctor ran up to Ida and Tyra before pulling them away from the metal door a little, just watching silently as the trapdoor opened segment by segment. Once it was open completely, there was only a deep shaft left.

Tyra exhaled shakily, stepping forward a little to look down into the never-ending darkness "I stand corrected. This is worse."

"_The gravity field,_" Zach breathed, fear lacing his voice "_It's going. We're losing orbit. We're going to fall into the black hole._"

From the darkness, a voice reached out to all of them "The Pit is open. And I am free. Bwahahahahahahaha."


	12. The Satan Pit

"Doctor?" Rose shouted into the Comm "Doctor, can you hear me? Doctor, Ida, Tyra, are you there?"

"_Open door 25._"

Jefferson and the guard prepared to shoot the person coming inside. Danny stumbled through the door, freezing when he saw the guns "It's me," he panted "But they're coming. It's the Ood. They've gone mad."

"How many of them?" Jefferson demanded.

Danny shook his head "All of them. All fifty…" His gaze fell on the unconscious Ood on the ground "What happened to them?"

"Can you take care of the others as well?" Jefferson asked Damon.

Damon shrugged "If that's what you want. They are rather easy to subdue…"

"Wait," Danny blinked "That was you? How?"

"Okay," Damon murmured, running a hand through his hair "I won't tell you. But the reason why Tyra and I split up… This is it. She will make sure that the others stay alive."

Jefferson shot forward, snatching Danny's arm to drag him away from the door "Out of the way."

"But they're armed," Danny pointed out "It's the interface device. I don't know how but they're using it as a weapon."

"_Open door 25._"

Jefferson prodded the door open and stepped out of the way as soon as the Ood came into view. The leading Ood was about to reach out with its globe when Damon shot forward again, felling the Ood left and right. It was more work to keep them alive but who was he to argue with the actual crew? While being here with Tyra and the Doctor, Damon felt like he could really be himself, be the person he had been as a human. Not the asshole who wanted to make his brother's life hell. Stefan deserved everything Damon gave him and more but it was tiring, always pretending to be someone he wasn't. Another reason why he loved being around Tyra and Sage – and even Caroline recently – was that she didn't pressure him. Elena and Stefan wanted to change him and he hated that. He was who he wanted to be. They had no right to boss him around.

"_Jefferson, what's happening there?" _Zach shouted over the intercom.

Jefferson shook his head "The Ood are unconscious, sir. How about you?"

"_All I've got is a bolt gun… With all of, er, all of one bolt,"_ Zach sighed "_I could take out a grand total of one Ood. Fat lot of good that is._"

"Given the emergency, I recommend strategy nine," Jefferson said.

"_Strategy nine… Agreed. Right, we need to get everyone together. Rose? What about Ida, Tyra and the Doctor? Any word?_"

"I can't get a reply," Rose admitted with tears in her eyes "Just nothing. I keep trying but it's…"

"_No, sorry,_" the Doctor's voice came through with lots of static breaking it up "_I'm fine. Still here._"

Rose's face turned red "You could've said," she hissed "You stupid…"

* * *

Tyra stumbled at the feedback coming through the Comms and would have fallen into the chasm, had Ida not reached out to steady her. The Doctor winced at the pain in his ears "Woah. Careful… Anyway, it's the three of us. Hello. But the seal opened up. It's gone." He stepped a little closer, peering into the darkness "All we've got left is this chasm."

"_How deep is it?_" Zach questioned curiously.

"Can't tell," the Doctor admitted "It looks like it goes down forever."

Rose's voice turned shaky "_The pit is open. That's what the voice said._"

"_But there's nothing. I mean, there's nothing coming out?_" Zach asked.

The Doctor hummed "No, no. No sign of the Beast."

"_It said Satan,_" Rose breathed.

"_Oh, keep it together,_" Damon rolled his eyes.

Rose huffed "_Is there no such thing? Doctor… Doctor, tell me there's no such thing._"

Tyra exchanged a look with the Doctor and shrugged "Damon?"

"_Ty?_"

"What happened up there?" she asked him.

Damon snorted "The Ood are taking a nap right now. We're all fine, though. Nothing's changed. Still nothing." The last bit was more than worrying. Toby was still dead and it had been hours. The fact that there hadn't even been a blip from his heart meant that Toby was well and truly gone and whatever was inside his body was an amazing actor. Tyra pressed her eyes closed for a moment. She wished that Niklaus were here… He knew more about possession than her. It had always been one of his favourite tricks after all.

"_Ida?_" Zach called "_I recommend that you withdraw immediately._"

"But we've come all this way," Ida argued.

Zach groaned "_Okay. That was an order. Withdraw. When that thing opened, the whole planet's shifted. One more inch and we fall into the black hole. So, this thing stops right now._"

"It's not much better up there with the Ood," Ida pointed out.

"_I'm initiating strategy nine, so I need the three of you back up top immediately. No ar…_"

Ida turned off the Comms and turned to the other two "What do you think?"

The Doctor licked his lips "I think they have an order."

"Yeah," Ida nodded "But what do you think?"

"It said, I'm the temptation," the Doctor murmured, lifting his foot to stand on the edge of the Pit."

Ida looked at him "Well, if there's something in there, why is it still hiding?"

"Maybe we opened the prison but not the cell," the Doctor shrugged.

Tyra raised her eyebrow, thinking about Toby "Or we opened the cell but not in the way we think."

"We should go down," Ida nodded "I'd go. What about you?"

The Doctor clenched his teeth in annoyance. Not at Ida or anyone really but at the situation in general "Oh. Oh, in a second but then again, that is so Human. Where angels fear to tread. Even now, standing on the edge. It's that feeling you get, eh? Right at the back of your head. That impulse. That strange little impulse. That mad little voice saying, go on. Go on. Go over. Go on. Maybe it's relying on that." He stepped back with a sigh, holding his hand out for Tyra to take "For once in my life, Officer Scott, I'm going to say retreat. Oh, now I know I'm getting old."

"If you're old then I am a fossil as well." Tyra tilted her head up.

"Still beautiful," the Doctor mumbled under his breath before he turned the Comms back on "Rose, we're coming back." Tyra blinked at him in surprise, unsure of whether she was supposed to hear his words or not.

"_Best news I've heard all day,_" Rose laughed.

The Doctor pulled Tyra along while she stared at the Pit, her head tilted in confusion. The feel had almost stopped now… Now that the Pit was open and she was away from Toby "What's strategy nine?"

Ida shrugged "Open the airlocks. We'll be safe inside the lockdown. The Ood will get thrown out into the vacuum."

"So, we're going back to a slaughter?" the Doctor narrowed his eyes, hand tightening around Tyra's "Tyra…"

Tyra looked over her shoulder at him and blinked a couple of times "Sorry," she mumbled, stepping into the capsule with the other two.

"Okay, we're in. Bring us up," Ida spoke up."

"_Ascension in three,_" Jefferson counted down "_Two, one…_" As soon as he reached one, the power went out.

* * *

"This is the darkness," the voice of the Beast boomed "This is my domain. You little things that live in the light, clinging to your feeble suns which die in the…"

Zach gasped "_That's not the Ood. Something's talking through them._"

"Only the darkness remains."

"_This is Captain Zachary Cross Flane of Sanctuary Base Six, representing the Torchwood archive. You will identify yourself,_" Zach hissed.

"You know my name," the Ood chorused as the voice of the Beast.

Zach's eyes shifted to the image on his screen "_What do you want?_"

"You will die here," the Beast announced "All of you. This planet is your grave."

Toby shivered "It's him, it's him, it's him."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes "_If you are the Beast, then answer me this. Which one, hmm? Cos the universe has been busy since you've been gone. There are more religions than there are planets in the sky. The Archiphets, Orkology, Christianity, Pash Pash, New Judaism, San Klah, Church of the Tin Vagabond. Which devil are you?_"

"All of them."

"_What, then you're the truth behind the myth?_" the Doctor shot back, his voice betraying his doubt.

The Beast scoffed "This one knows me as I know him. The killer of his own kind."

"_How did you end up on this rock?_" the Time Lord demanded, his hand finding Tyra's again. She looked up at the expression on his face and stepped closer to him, giving him as much silent support as she could.

"The Disciples of the Light rose up against me and chained me in the Pit for all eternity," the Beast explained.

The Doctor rolled his eyes "_When was this?_"

"Before time," the voice grunted.

"_What does before time mean?_" the Doctor shouted.

The Beast sighed "Before light and time and space and matter. Before the cataclysm. Before this universe was created."

"_That's impossible,_" the Doctor shook his head "_No life you have existed back then._"

"Is that your religion?"

The Doctor breathed out "_It's a belief._"

"You know nothing," the voice snapped "All of you, so small. The Captain, so scared of command." Zach shuddered at the words "The soldier, haunted by the eyes of his wife." Jefferson glared at the wall angrily "The scientist, still running from Daddy." Ida closed her eyes in pain "The little boy who lied." Danny shifted "The virgin." Toby barely reacted at the words, causing Damon to narrow his eyes at him "The broken man, hiding away from the world." The younger vampire raised his eyebrow in amusement "The warrior who is running so far from the people who hurt her." Tyra leaned her head against the Doctor's shoulder, the helmet stopping them from being closer "And the lost girl, so far away from home. The valiant child who will die in battle so very soon."

Rose swallowed in fear "Doctor, what does that mean?"

"_Rose, don't listen,_" the Doctor shook his head.

"What does it mean?" Rose demanded, her voice shaking.

"You will die," the Beast announced "And I will live." The image of the Ood was replaced by a roaring horned beast.

Danny reared back "What the hell was that?"

"I had that thing inside my head," Toby pointed out.

"Doctor, what did it mean?" Rose called out.

"What do we do?" Danny asked "Jefferson?"

Jefferson took a deep breath "Captain? What's the situation on strategy nine?"

"Zach, what do we do?" Danny questioned.

Toby stared at the far wall, oblivious to Damon's gaze. The younger of the two vampires had to admit that he was somewhat impressed by that thing's acting skills "The planet, the orbit, the black hole. Everything's true."

"Captain, report," Jefferson demanded.

"_We've lost pictures, Mister Jefferson,_" Zach reported.

Rose licked her lips "Doctor, how did it know all of…"

"_Did anyone get any…_" Ida started at the same time.

"Jefferson," Zach spoke up.

The Doctor raised a hand to his head in exasperation at all the voices who were overlapping "_Stop._"

"What did it mean?" Rose demanded.

"_Everyone just stop,_" the Doctor shouted. When they still threw demands all over each other, the Doctor reached down to turn Tyra's Comms off for a moment to send loud feedback through to shut them up. With another press of the button, Tyra could hear the silence that replaced the mass of voices "_You want voices in the dark then listen to mine. That thing is playing on very basic fears. Darkness, childhood nightmares, all that stuff._"

"But that's how the devil works," Danny pointed out hysterically.

The Doctor rolled his eyes "_Or a good psychologist._"

"_Yeah,_" Ida nodded unconvinced "_But how did it know about my father?_"

The Doctor closed his eyes for a moment "Okay, but what makes his version of the truth any better than mine, hmm? Cos I'll tell you what I can see. Humans. Brilliant humans. Humans who travel all the way across space, flying in a tiny little rocket right into the orbit of a black hole, just for the sake of discovery. That's amazing! Do you hear me? Amazing, all of you. The Captain, his Officer, his elders, his junior, his friends. All with one advantage. The Beast is alone. We are not. If we can use that to fight against him."

A bang shook the capsule and Ida gasped "The cable's snapped."

"Get out," the Doctor shouted as Tyra shoved him out behind Ida before falling to the ground next to them. The three got out of the capsule as the miles of steel cable arrived at speed.

* * *

"The Comms are down," Ida mumbled, getting up carefully.

The Doctor grabbed Tyra's outstretched hand, getting to his feet "How much air have we got?"

"Sixty minutes," Ida checked "Fifty-five." She looked at the capsule and the cable "Well, we've got all this cable, we might as well use it. The drum's disconnected. We could adapt it, feed it through."

The Doctor crossed his arms "And then what?"

Ida shrugged "Abseil into the Pit."

"Abseil," the Doctor nodded "Right."

"We're running out of air with no way back," Ida pointed out "it's the only thing we can do. Even if it's the last thing we ever achieve."

The Doctor wrapped his arm around Tyra's shoulders and pulled her to his side "We've got to get back. Out friends are up there."

"Well, maybe the key to that is finding out what's in the Pit."

"Well, it's half of a good plan," the Doctor sighed.

Ida looked at him "What's the other half?"

"I'll go down," the Doctor murmured "Not you."

Tyra freed herself from his grip "I can check how deep it is, Doctor."

"How?" Ida frowned.

"Jump," she shrugged.

Ida gaped "You'll die."

"Not permanently," Tyra grinned "That's why Damon and I split up. We're both pretty resilient without the right weapons. Me more so than him."

Ida tilted her head "What is that supposed to mean?"

The Doctor sighed "It's nothing. Just accept that she will survive the jump. With that, he turned to Tyra "Are you absolutely sure? I mean, the jump could be miles…"

"Do I have a choice?" she smiled slightly "I don't want you to get hurt. I'll go."

* * *

"Open junctions five, six, seven," Jefferson called out "Reroute filters sixteen to twenty-four. Go. The Ood are waking up again."

Danny peaked over his shoulders "There's all sorts of viruses that could stop the Ood. Trouble is, we haven't got them on board."

"Well, that's handy," Rose muttered sarcastically "Listing all the things we haven't got. We haven't got a swimming pool either. Or a Tesco's."

Danny laughed, looking at the affirmative on the screen "Oh, my God. It says yes. I can do it. Hypothetically, if you flip the monitor, broadcast a flare, it can disrupt the telepathy. Brainstorm."

"So… Would you kill them?" Damon tilted his head "Cause I can do that. You only have to say the word."

"No, no," Danny shook his head "Not kill them, just… get them back on track. Get rid of the influence on their minds."

"There we are, them," Rose grinned "Do it."

Danny shifted "No, but I'd have to transmit from the central monitor. We need to go to Ood Habitation."

Jefferson stepped forward "There's a network of maintenance tunnels running underneath the base. We should be able to gain access from here." He looked at Damon "No need to risk you anymore if we can just avoid the Ood completely."

"_I can manipulate the oxygen field from here,_" Zach piped up "_Create discrete pockets of atmosphere. If I control it manually, I can follow you through the network._"

Rose grimaced "So we go down and you make the air follow us by hand?"

"_You wanted me pressing buttons,_" Zach shrugged, slightly annoyed by the blonde. He didn't mind her so much but she was a little too… much for him.

"Yeah, I asked for it," Rose muttered "Okay, we need to get to Ood Habitation."

Damon glared at her lightly "Who died and made you king?"

"Shut up, Damon. No one asked you," Rose snapped.

"I'm not the one talking down on my friend. That's all on you, Blondie," the vampire pointed out with a dangerous smirk on his face.

Zach listened to them for another moment before he clinked back into the Comms "_Enough. We have enough problems without the two of you being at each other's throats_."

The group worked on getting a piece of deck plating up, while Danny hurriedly worked on the computer. Jefferson pulled on the man's shirt "Dan, we got to go now. Come on."

"Yeah," Danny nodded, grabbing an orange computer chip from the machine "Put that in the monitor and it's a bad time to be an Ood."

Jefferson gestured to the others "Okay. Danny, you go first, then you, Miss Tyler, then Toby. Damon and I'll go last in defensive position. Now, come on, quick as you can."

At the first shutter, Rose wrinkled her nose "God, it stinks. You alright?"

"Yeah," Danny mocked "I'm laughing. Which way do we go?"

"_Just go straight ahead. Keep going till I say so,_" Zach explained. Jefferson shut the entrance behind him as the Ood started to get up. He exchanged a look with Damon and nodded in acknowledgement at the vampire's look.

Rose looked forward as she crawled through the tunnels "Not your best angle, Danny."

"Oi, stop it," Danny huffed in annoyance.

"I don't know," Toby shrugged "It could be worse."

Zach checked his monitors "_Straight on until you find junction seven point one. Keep breathing. I'm feeding you air. I've got you._"

"We're at seven point one, sir," Danny announced, leaning against one of the shutters.

"_Okay, I've got you,_" Zach soothed "_I'm just aerating the next section._"

Danny shifted, his eyes darting around the small tunnel nervously "Getting kind of cramped, sir. Can't you hurry up?"

"_I'm working on half power, here,_" Zach snapped.

"Stop complaining," Jefferson groaned, settling himself against the wall of the tunnel.

Rose turned to Danny "Mister Jefferson says to stop complaining."

"I heard," Danny rolled his eyes.

"But the air's getting a bit thin," Toby complained.

Rose leaned her head back "He's complaining now."

"Rose, do all of us a favour and shut the hell up," Damon hissed, his pupils dilating as he accidentally compelled her on purpose.

Zach blinked at the sudden silence "_I'm just moving the air. I've got to oxygenate the next section. Now, keep calm or it's going to feel worse._"

There was a bang somewhere behind them that caused Danny to jump in fright "What was that?"

"The Ood," Damon murmured, tilting his head "It sounds like they are coming towards us."

"_He's right,_" Zach said "_The junction in Habitation Five's been opened. They're in the tunnels._"

Danny shivered "Well, open the gate."

"_I've got to get the air in,_" Zach soothed.

"Just open it, sir," Danny panicked.

Damon kept his eyes on the tunnel behind them "They're getting closer. Maybe three corridors away at most."

The gate behind Danny slid up as they hurried through "_Danny, turn left. Immediate left._"

"The Ood, sir," Jefferson panted lightly "Can't you trap them? Cut off the air?"

"_Not without cutting off yours," _Zach told them "_Danny, turn right. Go right! Go fast, Dan. They're going to catch up._"

Jefferson looked at the others "I'll maintain defensive position."

"You can't," Rose shook her head.

Damon looked at the older man "I'll stay too. I can get you out fast."

"You heard what they said," Toby rolled his eyes "Now shift." Jefferson braced himself on the sides of the tunnel and starts firing as Ood come around the corner.

"Eight point two," Danny practically shouted "Open eight point two. Zach, open eight point two."

While the rest of the group was ready to move on, Damon tapped Jefferson's shoulder "You go on. Stop shooting for a moment. I think I can take them."

"Are you sure?" the older man questioned.

Damon shrugged "I think I can." Jefferson looked at him for a moment before he nodded, crawling after the others. Damon closed his eyes for a moment before using his vampire speed to move forward, killing one Ood after the other. One of them threw its globe at him, causing the vampire to grimace in pain. The electricity didn't kill him but it did hurt enough to slow him down for a moment. A shot rang through the air and Damon dropped to the ground, panting. He turned his head in surprise and saw Jefferson crouching by the corner "I thought I told you to go."

"Don't thank me then," Jefferson called back "We have to hurry. Zach is closing eight point one. We have to get past the junction…"

Damon nodded, finishing off the last of the Ood and crawled towards the older man and together they hurried over to the gate just as it started lowering "Shit," Damon cursed and threw himself forward. He reached out to drag Jefferson through, accidentally banging the man's head against the wall, making him go limp "Well… At least he's alive…"

"_Jefferson, are you through?_" Zach called.

"We made it… Jefferson is out. I had to drag him through. Sorry," Damon shrugged apologetically "The Ood are dead."

Zach sighed in relief "_That's good. Okay, Damon? Turn left. The others are out of the tunnels already and on their way to Ood Habitation, so it's just the two of you in the tunnels right now._"

Damon nodded "Got it. Shouldn't be long."

Up in the corridors, the rest of the group was moving forward quickly "There are more Ood here,_" _Danny shouted as soon as they approached Ood Habitation "They're coming. We have to…"

"Transmit," Rose called out, keeping an eye on the Ood. This would have been so easy to solve had Tyra just given in and turned her. She could have saved them all and this would be over…

Danny made a noise at the back of his throat "I'm trying, I'm trying. I'm getting at it." He searched through his pockets for the computer chip as the Ood came up the stairs.

"Danny, get that thing transmitting." He did and the reading went from basic one hundred to zero. All the Ood grabbed their heads and writhe for a few seconds before collapsing.

"Zach, we did it," Danny reported "The Ood are down. Now we've got to get the others."

"_I'm on my way,_" Zach nodded "_Damon, what's your status?_"

Damon hauled Jefferson out of the tunnels and picked him up easily "_Jefferson's still out but we're in a corridor. Near door… 32._"

Zach frowned before nodding to himself "_I'm coming to get you._"

* * *

Tyra looked up in confusion when she heard something falling and quickly leapt back when a body crashed to the ground in front of her "Doctor," she gasped, falling to her knees next to the unconscious man. His helmet had broken the same way hers had which would suggest that his Comms had broken as well. Whether that was due to the helmet or their present… company, she didn't know. Not that she necessarily wanted to find out either "Come on, wake up… I don't wanna be alone with that thing for longer than necessary…"

It took another twenty or so minutes until the Doctor moved "I'm breathing…" He looked around before noticing Tyra "Ty. You're okay."

"I'm alright," Tyra smiled, patting his back when he pulled her into his arms "The Comms don't work down here and it's too deep to hear what's going on up there. Even for me."

The Doctor's head snapped up when the sound of a rocket reached their ears "A rocket."

"Do you think Rose and Damon are on it?"

"I hope so," the Doctor murmured, squinting around the darkness "Did you find anything down here?"

Tyra nodded "We're not alone, Doctor."

"What does that mean?" the Doctor blinked.

Tyra grabbed his hand, tugging him to a wall "There are paintings here. The history of some battle against a Beast or something. This Beast was imprisoned here in this very cave… Over there, actually." She pointed to a dark abyss that she had almost fallen into earlier when she hadn't been paying attention to where she had been stepping.

The Doctor shone his torch two bronze urns, both sat on a separate pedestal "Maybe they are the key?" He reached his hand out to touch one of them, causing them both to light up "Or the gate… Or the bars." The cave lit up, revealing the impossibly big and horned creature that Tyra had caught a glimpse of earlier. It had chains wrapped around its horns and limbs, tying it to the wall "I take it this is the one you were talking about, Ty?"

"Oh, you think?" she deadpanned.

The Doctor rolled his eyes "Shush you."

"You were the one asking stupid questions," Tyra pointed out, keeping her eyes fixed on the Beast.

The Doctor stared at the thing, his expression hard "I accept that you exist," he admitted "I don't have to accept what you are but your physical existence, I'll give you that. I don't understand… I was expected down here. Both Tyra and I were expected and given a safe landing and air. You need us for something. What for?" He looked over at Tyra, deep in thought "Have we got to, I don't know, beg for an audience? Or is there a ritual? Some sort of incantation or summons or spell? All these things I don't believe in, are they real?" Tyra bit her lips, holding back from calling the Doctor's bluff. They both knew that he believed in magic… After all, magic was just science and the other way around "Speak to me," the Doctor shouted at the Beast "Tell me." When no answer came, he took a deep breath "You won't talk. Or you can't talk. Oh, hold on, wait a minute. Just let me… Oh. No. Yes."

"What the hell are you doing?" Tyra blinked, watching him hit his head several times.

He barely spared her a glance though "Think it through. You spoke before, I heard your voice. An intelligent voice. No, more than that. Brilliant. But, look at you know, all I can see is Beast. The animal. Just the… body." The Doctor trailed off, his eyes widening "You're just the body, the physical form. What's happened to your mind, hm? Where's it gone?"

Tyra gasped "Crap… Doctor, Toby. After that incident in his room… He died. Toby has been dead for a while now which would mean that…" The Beast started laughing at them, roaring out its amusement "They're taking him away."

The Doctor paled a little at the thought and continued "You're imprisoned, long time ago. Before the universe, after, sideways, in between… Doesn't matter. The prison is perfect. It's absolute, it's eternal. Oh, yes." He snapped his fingers before pacing again "Open the prison, the gravity field collapses. This planet falls into the black hole. You escape, you die. Brilliant. But that's just the body. The body is trapped, that's all."

"But then why is it calling himself the Devil?" What's up with that?" Tyra frowned, trying to understand the way the Doctor's mind worked. She had guessed some of that stuff as well but the leaps and bounds, the Doctor's mind were making was far beyond her.

"The Devil is an idea," he explained "In all those civilisations, just an idea. But an idea is hard to kill. An idea could escape. The mind. The mind of the great Beast. The mind can escape. You didn't give us air, your jailers did. They set this up all those years ago. They need us alive because if you're escaping, then we've got to stop you. If we can destroy your prison, your body is destroyed. Your mind with it." The Doctor looked around before picking up a stone. He raised his arm to smash one of the urns before closing his eyes "But then you're clever enough to use this whole system against us. If we destroy this planet, we destroy the gravity field. The rocket. The rocket loses protection and falls into the black hole. I have to sacrifice my friends." He looks at Tyra with serious eyes "We have to sacrifice our friends."

Tyra licked her lips "But if it's the only way. Damon knows what he got himself into. I don't know how or why but he does."

"So that's the trap, is it?" the Doctor huffed "Or the test or the final judgement, I don't know. But if I kill you, I kill them. Except that implies in this big grand scheme of Gods and Devils that they're just victims. I've seen a lot of this universe. I've seen fake Gods and bad Gods and demi-gods and would-be Gods and out of all that, out of that whole pantheon, if I believe in one thing, just one thing, I believe in my Companions." He smashed the urn, causing the Beast's laughter to turn into angry roars. When the second urn was shattered into pieces, the Doctor dropped the rock and grabbed Tyra's hand "This is your freedom. Free to die. You're going into that black hole and we're riding with you."

Tyra turned to him with a small grin "Not if I have found a way out of here," Tyra breathed "I found her earlier before I almost fell from that ledge." The Doctor shot her a confused look but Tyra just tugged at his hand again, trying to keep on her feet while the shaking got worse and worse.

* * *

The rocket started shaking violently. Danny tensed, looking at the Captain in fear "What happened? What was that?"

Toby narrowed his eyes "What's he doing? What is he doing?" Damon tilted his head at the guy, seeing the change in him immediately.

"We've lost the funnel. Gravity collapse," Zach called out to the others, trying desperately to save the situation somehow.

Rose gripped her seat tightly "What does that mean?"

"We can't escape," Zach breathed, giving up "We're headed straight for the black hole."

Rose closed her eyes in realization "It's the planet. The planet's moving. It's falling."

"I am the rage," Toby – or the Beast roared, his face covered in symbols again.

"It's Toby," Rose cried out "Zach, do something."

"You know, Tyra has told me to keep an eye on you. Not that she needed to. The fact that you are dead is a very concerning point," Damon said, looking straight at Toby.

"Dead?" Zach frowned, looking back at the vampire who had saved Jefferson earlier. The older man was still knocked out but other than that, he seemed fine "What do you mean 'dead'?"

Damon shrugged "I mean that his heart stopped beating. In fact, it stopped beating not too long after we first got here."

"And the bile and the ferocity," the Beast continued, ignoring the conversation around him. They wouldn't be able to stop this. Curse that Doctor and that girl. Although, no matter how much he tried to deny it, the Beast was curious about her. She was strong, certainly and the feel about her... Not immortal but something very similar "I am the Prince and the Fall and the enemy. I am the sin and the fear and the darkness."

Danny shuddered at both the words and the image that was Toby "It's him. It's him. It's him."

"Stay where you are," Zach shouted over his shoulder "The ship's not stable." When he saw Toby breathe out fire, he gasped "What is he? What the hell is he?"

"I shall never die," the Beast announced "The thought of me is forever. In the bleeding hearts of men, in their vanity and obsession and lust…"

Damon kicked the bolt gun to Rose which she had dropped earlier "Do what you have to," he called, keeping his eyes on the dead guy.

"Nothing shall ever destroy me. Nothing."

Rose raised the gun shakily "Go to hell." With that, she shot out the front screen of the rocket while the vampire unfastened the Beast's seatbelt, causing him to get sucked out into space.

Zach quickly worked on the controls, trying to raise the emergency shields "Emergency shields," he breathed in relief when metal shutters sealed the hole "We've still lost the gravity funnel. We can't escape the black hole."

Rose shook her head "But we stopped him. That's what the Doctor would've done."

"Tyra too," Damon murmured "Well, new Tyra."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Danny frowned, turning to look at the raven-haired vampire.

The Salvatore shrugged "I've rarely seen her the way she is acting now… Not that it's a bad thing. She is actually being more herself than I have seen in a long time."

"Some victory," Zach rolled his eyes, trying to hide his fear "We're going in. Accelerate… I did my best. But hey." He let out a wry grin "First human beings to fall inside a black hole. How about that? History."

All of a sudden the shaking stopped completely and the rocket calmed "What happened?" Rose frowned, looking around.

"We're turning," the captain blinked in confusion "We're turning around. We're turning away."

* * *

"Sorry about the hijack, Captain," the Doctor said after establishing a connection to the rocket "This is the good ship Tardis. Now, first things first. Have you got a Rose Tyler and a Damon Salvatore on board?"

"_I'm here,_" Rose called out excitedly "_I'm me. Damon is here too. Oh, my God… Where are you?_"

The Doctor looked at Tyra and back to the console "I'm just towing your home. Gravity schmavity. My people practically invented black holes. Well, in fact, they did. In a couple of minutes, we'll be nice and safe. Oh, and Captain? Can we do a swap? Say… You give me Rose and Damon and I'll give you Ida Scott?"

"_She's alive?_" Zach breathed.

Danny laughed "_Yes. Thank God._"

Tyra knelt down next to the unconscious woman, checking her pulse again "She's fine," Tyra nodded.

"Bit of oxygen starvation," the Doctor relied "But she should be alright. I couldn't save the Ood. I only had time for one trip. They went down with the planet." A small sound echoed through the Tardis "Ah. Entering clear space. End of the line. Mission closed."

Ida was slowly waking up when Tyra helped her out of the Tardis and to where Danny was waiting for them. He was staring at the Tardis in confusion before coming over to support his colleague and friend "What is that?"

"The Tardis," Tyra smiled mysteriously before going over to join Damon and Rose in walking back to the blue box."

"Are you alright?" Damon murmured quietly.

Tyra nodded "I'm fine, Damon." She tilted her head, watching Rose run to the Doctor, flinging her arms around him "What about you?"

"Fine," Damon sighed, wrapping his arms around her. He rested his chin on Tyra's head "Ty, I've been thinking. Maybe it's time for me to go back to Mystic Falls."

"I was wondering when you were going to say anything," Tyra smiled, turning her face into his chest "I've expected it after last adventure if I'm honest with you. I'm going to miss you, though."

Damon pressed a small kiss to the top of her head "You can always come and visit."

"And you can call," Tyra told him.

"Zach?" the Doctor spoke up from the console, having changed back into his normal suit "We'll be off, now. Have a good trip home and next time you get curious about something… Oh, what's the point… You'll just go blundering in." He shook his head with an exasperated smile "The Human race."

"_But Doctor, what did you find down there? That creature, what was it?_" Ida called out.

Tyra swallowed lightly, thinking about the creature. The Doctor caught her gaze and she tilted her head questioningly "I don't know," he murmured, his eyes staring at the rotor unseeingly "Never did decipher that writing. But that's good. Day I know everything? Might as well stop."

Rose turned to look up at him, while Tyra sank onto the jump seat with Damon's arms still wrapped around her, unwilling to let go of her yet "What do you think it was, really?"

"I think we beat it," the Doctor pointed out with a subtle hint of warning to his voice "That's good enough for me."

"It said I was going to die in battle," Rose murmured.

The Doctor blew out a breath "Then it lied. Right, onwards, upwards… Ida? See you again, maybe."

"_I hope so,_" Ida smiled.

"And thanks, boys," Rose added.

Before the Doctor could cut the connection, Ida continued "_Hang on though, Doctor. You never really said. You four, who are you?_"

The Doctor smirked, looking around the console room at his friends "Oh, the stuff of legends."

* * *

A little while later, they were in the Time Vortex, just sitting around the console room in silence when Damon spoke up. He had done what he wanted, catching Rose after him and Tyra had talked a little more about what his plans were for going back to Mystic Falls "Doctor? I think… Could you bring me back home?"

The Doctor blinked and glanced at Tyra who sent him a sad smile "Er, sure. Same time you left?"

"Maybe a few days later or something," Damon shrugged "It doesn't really matter."

Tyra snorted "As long as it's not a year… Or a hundred."

"That was once," the Doctor complained.

"Face it, Doc," Tyra shook her head "It happens more often than you care to admit. Dickens, bringing Rose back and Queen Victoria… Elvis."

The Doctor huffed and held up his hands as a sign of surrender "Alright, alright. I get it." A smirk crossed his face "Twice then."

Tyra shook her head, letting out a laugh "Alright. If you want to delude yourself into thinking that."

"Here we are," the Doctor gestured as the Tardis stopped her shaking "Mystic Falls. A few days after we picked you up, Damon."

Damon tilted his head, mischief lighting up in his eyes "Are you sure about that?"

"Not you too," the Doctor grumbled but looked at the monitor to double-check "Yes. I'm sure that it's only been… three days."

"That's fine, then," Damon smirked before ruffling Tyra's hair "Don't be a stranger, Ty."

Tyra hummed, wrapping her arms around his neck "I won't be."

Damon nodded before clasping the Doctor's shoulder "Thank you for taking me along, Doctor. I'm sure we'll see each other again soon." He looked over at Rose for a moment, a smirk crossing his face as he thought about the present he left Tyra "Rose."

"If you ever want to come along again, just call Tyra," the Doctor smiled, nodding his head at Damon "It was nice to meet you."

Damon glanced to Tyra "I'm sure it was." He lowered his voice to a whisper that only Tyra could hear "When you weren't jealous."

"Damon," Tyra exclaimed, showing him to the door "No. Just… No."

"You're so blind," he teased before making his way to the door "I'm going to enjoy telling you 'I told you so' in the future." Tyra huffed, shaking her head at him. He was an ass. Simple as that.

The Doctor raised his eyebrows in confusion "What was that about?"

Tyra's cheeks flushed a little "Nothing. Damon was just being an ass. Not that that's anything new."

"Doctor?" Damon called from the open door "There was something I wanted to show you before you leave again."

The Doctor shot Tyra a confused look and she shrugged "Just humour him. It's usually the best way to get rid of him. I'm going to go to my room to grab some blood and sleep." Before she walked out, she hugged him "I'm glad that you're okay."

The Doctor stared after Tyra, shaking his head in confusion. He really liked her but… she didn't feel the same thing, right? All the hugs and everything. She was just being nice.

"Doctor."

"I'm coming," the Doctor huffed, walking out of the Tardis to join the Damon "What's wrong?"

Damon shook his head "Nothing's wrong. I just wanted to talk to you about something."

"Alright," the Doctor nodded, already knowing that he wanted to talk about Tyra."

"I need you to look after Tyra," Damon said seriously. The Doctor was about to open his mouth to tell the vampire that she could look after herself when Damon held up his hand "I know that she can look after herself but I'm scared that she's going to snap sooner or later.

The Doctor opened his mouth in protest "Snap…?"

"Tyra is a genuinely good person, no matter what she thinks about herself but I'm worried, Doctor," the Salvatore cut him off, trying to get the man to understand. He didn't understand… Not yet "I've seen her snap before and if someone annoys her enough, I fear that it could potentially be a disaster. Please… I just need to know that you won't abandon her if something does happen."

The Doctor looked up at Damon, his eyes serious as can be "I promise you that no matter what she does I won't abandon her. I want to help."

"That's the thing," Damon pointed out "She doesn't need help. She needs someone who accepts her unconditionally. Just the way you need someone to stop you sometimes."

"I…" the Doctor broke off and cleared his throat "I promise that I will do everything in my power to make sure she is happy. I won't even abandon her. Not even for killing… I know that she's a vampire and that killing is somewhat in her nature, so I can't blame her for doing that."

Damon smiled lightly and clapped his shoulder before walking towards the Boarding House that was in the distance "That's all I needed to hear."


	13. Fear Her

_Flashback_

_Tyra was hanging out with the Doctor and Rose in the console room, talking about where to go next when her phone started ringing. She glanced down at the display in surprise and answered "Hello?"_

"_Tyra," a hysterical voice came through the speaker of the phone "Please, you have to help us. They're coming to kill us."_

_The Original shot up from when she was sitting on the railing "James, James, calm down and tell me what's going on. Who is coming?" James was part of the London Alpha Coven and one of her friends. The vampire didn't see him as often as she wanted since she didn't really spend too much time in England anymore but whenever she did, Tyra visited him at least once._

"_Vampires. Vampires are coming after us. I don't know what we did but they started hunting us down," James explained, slightly less hysterically._

"_Okay," Tyra murmured, running a hand through her hair "Where are you now?"_

_James let out a shaky breath "Safe for now. They can't enter the house."_

"_Good. That's good… Can you tell me what date it is? Don't ask, just tell me," she asked him, looking at the Doctor. Her hand went over the speaker part of the phone "I need to go to London immediately. As close to Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford as you can get me. Linear time."_

_The Doctor nodded seriously and set the Tardis into motion "Sure."_

"_James? I'll be there as soon as I can. Stay inside until I come. Don't open the door, don't do anything until I'm there. Do you understand?" the Original demanded._

"_Y – Yeah. But Tyra… Our kids are still in school. They're going to come here soon."_

_She cursed loudly "Call the school. Tell them to keep the kids. Am I still an emergency contact? I'll pick them up and take them to my house."_

"_Thank you," the warlock breathed in relief, commanding someone to call the schools of their children "I'll text you the addresses. I'm sorry for troubling you."_

"_Not at all," the vampire waved off, holding onto the railing she had been sitting on previously "I told you that I would take care of all of you. After all, you're one of mine." When the Tardis stopped shaking, Tyra sighed "I'm coming, alright? Just hang tight." she hung up the phone, sliding it back into her pocket with a long sigh._

_The Doctor looked over at the girl "Everything alright?"_

"_I'm not sure," she mumbled "Some… acquaintances need my help with… You heard."_

"_Do you want us to come with you?" he asked._

_Tyra shook her head "No. They don't trust outsiders much. Sorry… I'll call you when I'm done, alright?"_

_The Time Lord walked over, placing his hands on the vampire's shoulders "Be careful."_

"_Don't worry about me," Tyra smiled._

_Rose made a noise at the back of her throat, her disgust rising. Really, why did Tyra think that she was so much better than her? Rose would make a better vampire than the other girl ever could. She wouldn't be a murderer for one "So what are you going to do? Kill them all?"_

_Tyra looked over at the blonde and glared in annoyance "Don't talk about things you don't understand, Rose. They are after people under my protection."_

_The Doctor looked hesitant before nudging the Original towards the door "Go on, then. Don't forget to call."_

"_I won't. Thanks for this… I don't know…"_

"_I expect a story out of this one," the Time Lord pointed at her with a small grin. He might not be happy about what might happen but he understood where she was coming from "Go and help your acquaintances."_

_End Flashback_

"You promised me a story," the Doctor spoke up, coming up behind Tyra.

Tyra dropped her head over the edge of her bed and groaned "Now?"

"Yup," the Doctor nodded, throwing himself onto the bed next to her "No time like the present."

"Says the time traveller," Tyra snorted.

The Doctor poked her in the side "Come on. Please?"

"Stop looking at me like that," Tyra mumbled, shoving a pillow in his pouting face "Fine. What do you want to know?"

"What happened? Who was the man who called you?" the Doctor frowned.

Tyra rolled to the side to look at him "Why? You jealous?"

"You wish," the Doctor grumbled a little too fast "No. I just want to know what happened."

"Some friends of mine," Tyra started "They are the London Alpha Coven. When Kol and I created the Coven, we promised them that we would take care of them and theirs. They are under our protection and since Kol isn't here, I have to be the one to protect them. A group of vampires thought it was a good idea to threaten them. I took care of it."

The Doctor hummed "So you protect them because you helped create the Coven?"

"Yeah," Tyra nodded "Back when we first started the Coven… It is a sanctuary. Not many people know exactly who they are but they take in the members of other Covens who were thrown out or never had a Coven, to begin with."

"You created a Coven to take care of the outcasts?"

Tyra nodded "Yeah. Kol and I – we were always close to witches and we learned a lot about magic over the centuries. Why not share it with people who appreciate our efforts?"

The Doctor smiled "See, you say that you're not a good person and then you turn around and do something like this."

"We know how it is to feel like outcasts," Tyra shrugged and looked down at her lap "Anyway, enough of that. I went to see Jackie too. Met a guy named Elton…"

"Yeah?" the Doctor asked "What did you think of him?"

Tyra paused for a moment, unsure of what to say "I have no idea. He's… different, that's for sure."

"Him and LINDA," the Doctor grinned "They've been around for a bit. I think I heard of a LINDA in my earlier regenerations… I was so embarrassed back then. Funny how people change."

"Well, they were your biggest fans," Tyra coughed in amusement "You have that kind of aura that just draws in the crazies."

The Doctor grimaced, rolling over to trap Tyra on the bed, a grin stealing its way across his face "Does that make you one of the crazies too?"

"Hm. I thought you already knew that I was crazy," Tyra breathed, staring into the Doctor's eyes. She swallowed before rolling them around, shifting to sit next to him with her legs crossed.

The Doctor, still sprawled out on his bed glanced up, a little disappointed. He had seen the look in her eyes and he couldn't stop the hope that blossomed in his chest "You said it."

"Doesn't mean that you have to agree," Tyra huffed before shaking her head "So… Where are we going next? Any idea?"

"I was thinking we could go to the London Olympics," the Doctor offered "Or maybe we could finally go to Barcelona."

Tyra tilted her head "I'd say Olympics. What year are they?"

"2012," the Doctor replied.

"Hm. Well, I'm not much into sports but we can still go to Barcelona some other time," Tyra shrugged "We have waited this long."

The Doctor hummed and rolled himself to his feet "Olympics it is. Let's get Rose and get going."

* * *

The three of them were gathered in the console room, Rose and Tyra watching the Doctor fly the Tardis. As soon as she materialised, the Doctor grinned at the girls, running to the door. He froze in the doorway and grimaced "Ah." Over his shoulder, Tyra could see the wall of a container blocking the way out.

"Messed up the landing?" Tyra teased, smirking as the Doctor trudged back to the console, pressing a few switches.

"It's not my fault," the Doctor huffed, throwing a small glare at the console. He opened the door again and stepped out "Better."

Rose followed him, shaking her head in exasperation. She checked out the posters on the container and raised an eyebrow "So, near future, yeah?"

The Doctor blinked "Oh, right. I forgot to tell you. Thirtieth Olympiad."

"No way," Rose laughed "Why didn't I think of that? That's great."

"Only seems like yesterday a few naked Greek blokes were tossing a discus about," the Doctor shook his head in remembrance "Wrestling each other in the sand with the crowds stood around baying. No, wait a minute, that was Club Med. Just in time for the opening doo dah, ceremony tonight. I thought the two of you would like that. Last one they had in London was dynamite. Wembley, 1948."

"Hm," Tyra mumbled "I think I was still in Africa back then."

The Doctor looked around "I loved it so much, I went back and watched it all over again. Fella carrying the torch. Lovely chap, what was his name?" Tyra's attention was drawn to a man who was putting up missing posters a few feet away. Rose noticed him too and walked over "Mark? John? Mark? Legs like pipe cleaners but strong as a whippet."

"Doctor," Rose called out, causing Tyra to join her quickly.

Tyra blinked at the posters on the wall "This is… Not totally unexpected. Why does this always happen to us?"

"I have no idea," Rose mumbled before turning back to the still rambling Doctor "Doctor."

"Did you ever have one of those little cakes with the crunchy ball bearings on top?" the Doctor questioned.

Tyra snorted "Doc, I think you should come and take a look at this."

"Do you know those things, Ty?" the Doctor asked, strolling over to them "Nobody else in the entire galaxy has ever even bothered to make edible ball bearings. Genius." He glanced over Tyra's shoulder at the two missing posters "What's taking them, do you think? Snatching children from a thoroughly ordinary street like this. Why's it so cold? Is someone reducing the temperature?"

Rose looked over her shoulder at him "It says they all went missing this week. Why would a person do something like this?"

"Maybe it's not a person," Tyra offered with a shrug.

Rose crossed her arms "Well, whatever it is, it's got the whole street scared to death." Before she even finished, the Doctor ran up the street to investigate the front lawn of a house "Doctor, what…?"

As the two girls walked over, a car stopped in the middle of the road, the engine giving out. One of the road menders went over "There you go," he mumbled, looking at the driver "Fifth today. Not natural, is it?"

"I don't know what happened," the driver frowned in confusion "I had it serviced less than a month ago."

The road mender shook his head "Nah, don't even try and explain it, mate. All the cars are doing it. And do you know what? It's bonkers," he exclaimed "Bonkers. Come on then, pal. I'll help you shift it. Quicker you're on the way, happier you'll be." The two men started pushing at the car, making very little progress.

"Do you want a hand?" Rose offered.

"No, we're alright, love," the worker shook his head, obviously struggling.

Rose raised her eyebrow "You're not. I'm tougher than I look, honest." She joined them in pushing the car before glancing over at Tyra. She had been watching with an amused look, her arms crossed "A little help?"

"I thought you were tougher than you look, Rose," Tyra mocked, watching them make slow to no progress.

"Don't be a bitch, Tyra," Rose grunted. She tilted her head and went to help somewhat reluctantly when the engine suddenly burst into life.

The worker fell over as the driver quickly got back into his car "Cheers, mate."

Tyra held out her hand, pulling the worker back to his feet easily as Rose looked at him "Does this happen a lot?"

"Been doing that all week," the man huffed.

Rose blinked "Since those children started going missing?"

Tyra looked over to where the Doctor was and saw a man standing over the Doctor, glaring angrily "Oh dear…." she mumbled under her breath, hurrying over in time to hear the Doctor's reply.

"Quite good at squash. Reasonable," he shrugged "I'm being facetious, aren't I? There's no call for it." The Doctor got up, slowly stumbling back towards the street "I'm – I'm a police officer. That's what I am. I've got a badge and a police car." Tyra coughed in amusement, earning herself a look from both the angry man as well as the Doctor "You don't have to get… I can – I can prove it. Just hold on."

"We've had plenty of coppers poking around in here," the man – one of the children's parents hissed. He had been the one to put up the posters earlier "And you don't look like any of them."

Tyra tilted my head "Are you stereotyping the police force?"

The Doctor threw his arm around Tyra's shoulders and gestured to Rose "See, look? I've got colleagues."

"They look less like a copper than you do," the man snorted before glancing at Tyra "And too young as well."

"Training," the Doctor cut in before Tyra could open her mouth to protest. She knew that depending on what she was wearing and her hairstyle, she could look anything between sixteen and twenty-one. At least, it was better than to be mistaken as a child every single time "New recruits. It was either that or hairdressing, so… Voila." The Doctor brandished his psychic paper in front of the man, still backing away towards Rose.

Several people had come out of their houses now, joining in the crowd around them "What are you going to do?" a dark-skinned woman questioned suspiciously.

"The police have knocked on every door," an older woman cut in "No clues, no leads, nothing."

"Look," the man who had put the posters up sighed "Kids run off sometimes, alright? That's what they do."

The old woman stepped forward "Saw it with me own eyes. Dale Hicks in your garden, playing with your Tommy and then pfft. Right in front of me, like he was never there. There's no need to look any further than this street. It's right here amongst us."

"Why don't we…"

The Doctor was cut off by one of the other women "Why don't we start with him?" she sneered, jabbing her finger at the council worker "There's been all sorts like him in this street. Day and night."

"Fixing things up for the Olympics," he defended himself.

Tom's father crossed his arms "Yeah and taking an awful long time about it."

"I'm of the opinion that all we've got to do is just…" the Doctor started, only to be cut off again.

"You don't," the worker shouted "What you just said, that's slander."

The woman scoffed "I don't care what it is."

"I think we need to just…"

"I want an apology off her," the worker demanded, glaring at the woman who had accused him of being responsible for the missing children.

Tyra patted the Doctor's shoulder when his put-out look registered "Have fun," she whispered, leaning over to him.

"Stop picking on him," the old woman muttered.

The worker nodded "Yeah, stop picking on me."

"And stop pretending to be blind," the old woman huffed out "It's evil."

"I don't believe in evil," one of the women denied, looking at the older woman as if she lost her mind.

The council worker scoffed "Oh no, you just believe in tarmackers with sack loads of kidnapped kiddies in their van."

"Here, here, here," Tom's dad held up his hands "That's not what she's saying."

"Would you stop ganging up on me?" the worker groaned in annoyance.

The woman smirked "Feeling guilty, are we?"

"Fingers on lips," the Doctor shouted, finally cutting through the argument. The others slowly joined in and at the Doctor's sharp look, Rose raised her finger as well, making the shush gesture.

Tyra scoffed when the Doctor shot her a look "Yeah, n – hmpf." She was pulled against his chest with his hand over her mouth.

"Your own fault," he murmured into her ear before raising his voice "In the last six days, three of your children have been stolen. Snatched out of thin air, right?"

The old woman nodded and looked down at her finger "Er, can I?" The Doctor nodded "Look around you. This was a safe street until it came. It's not a person. I'll say it if no one else will. Maybe you're coppers, maybe you're not. I don't care who you are. Can you please help us?"

Tyra twisted away from the Doctor's hand before looking up when she heard something inside the house next to them. One of the women noticed a girl standing by the window and hurried into the house.

* * *

After the group had disbanded, the Doctor went back to sniffing the air by Tom's house. Tyra didn't need to ask what he was doing. The smell was pretty bad even from her place a few feet away. Rose raised her eyebrow at the Doctor's bloodhound routine "Want a hanky?"

"Can you smell it?" the Doctor asked Tyra "What does it remind you of?"

Tyra nodded and licked her lips "Metal. Some sort of metal or something."

"Mm-hm," the Doctor nodded before getting up, hurrying in the direction of a back alley between two back gardens "Danny Edwards cycled in one end but never came out the other." He shuddered slightly, holding out his hand "Whoa, there it goes again. Look at the hairs on the back of my manly hairy hand."

Rose raised her hand to her nose "And there's that smell again."

"There's a residual energy," the Doctor explained "In the spots where the kids vanished. Whatever it was, it used an awful lot of power to do this." He shook his head, wandering back out of the side alley to the main street.

Rose cooed at a cat who had walked up to her "Aren't you a beautiful boy?" The Doctor turned around in confusion before seeing Rose talking to a small orange cat "I used to have one like that, you know." She glanced up, seeing the Doctor grimace "What?"

"No… I'm not really a cat person," he mumbled "Once you've been threatened by one in a nun's wimple it kind of takes the joy out of it."

Tyra rolled her eyes "Most of what happened in that Hospital was Cassandra's fault."

"Doctor," Rose shouted from over by a yard. She was kneeling next to a cardboard box. Tyra froze a couple of feet away from the box, the smell stronger than she could stomach at the moment. Funny, considering that she was used to smelling rotting corpses.

"Whoa," the Doctor blinked, his eyes watering "Ion residue. Blimey… That takes some doing. Just to snatch a living organism out of space-time. This baby is just like – I'm having some of that. I'm impressed."

Rose tilted her head "So the cat's been transported?"

"It can harness huge reserves of ionic power, the Doctor explained "We need to find the source of that power. Find the source and you will find whatever has taken to stealing children and fluffy animals. Ty, go that way, will you? See what you can find. Rose…"

Rose glanced at the other girl, gritting her teeth when the words that she wanted to say started choking her "I'm going with Tyra."

The Doctor frowned in confusion „Erm… Alright? Tyra?"

"Yeah, it's fine," she waved him off, raising an eyebrow at Rose. She had an inkling on what that was about but she honestly hoped that she was wrong. Thankfully, Rose hadn't been quite as annoying since Damon left but that didn't mean they got along.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Rose made a frustrated noise in the back of her throat "Oh, come on," she huffed.

Tyra coughed at Rose's impression of a fish "You good?"

"I hate Damon," she hissed "What did you tell him? Did you tell him to compel me?"

"He compelled you?" Tyra frowned "What did he…" She broke off and let out an amused laugh "Oh, this is priceless. He made sure you couldn't ask anyone to turn you. I should give him a gift or something." She nodded thoughtfully "I was wondering why you've been as nice as you have been."

Rose glared "This isn't funny," she grounded out "Reverse it."

Tyra held up her hands "Oh, no. This isn't my problem and if anything, it actually serves you right. You should have given up a long time ago."

"I want to stay with the Doctor," Rose argued.

"Okay," Tyra sighed, running a hand through her hair "Let's say that I do turn you." When Rose's eyes lit up, she shook her head "Hypothetically. Let's say I turn you. Do you honestly think that the Doctor would let either of us travel with him after that?"

"He lets you travel with him," Rose shrugged.

Tyra nodded slowly "He does. Now. But if I do turn you… If I turn you the Doctor won't let either of us tag along. You can stay with him as long as he allows it. Both of us are dependent on his choices. I don't think he would appreciate it if you throw your life away for him."

"You're just saying that," Rose huffed, crossing her arms. She wasn't being outright mean to Tyra because it always felt like the words were stuck in her throat but she could still act petulant. She really didn't understand why Tyra didn't just do her the favour.

"Are you…?" Tyra groaned "Rose, if I turn you then you wouldn't be able to stop yourself. You would hear the blood pumping through your mother's veins, hear her heartbeat and before you know what you're doing, you'd have her pinned against the wall with your teeth buried in her neck. Do you want that? And what if it doesn't happen with Jackie but a child or the Doctor, huh? You're never going to forgive yourself if you hurt someone."

"Then I'll just drink from blood bags like you do," Rose shrugged, still not getting why Tyra was arguing this much. Maybe she just wanted the Doctor for herself. Yeah, that must be it. Tyra was jealous that the Doctor liked her more "I really don't get why you keep saying that I wouldn't have control… Why you continue to say no."

Before Rose could blink, her back hit the garage of a three-story house "For the last time, Rose. No. I'm not turning you and if you don't get that through your thick skull, I will tell the Doctor. You won't be able to ask any other vampire because of what Damon compelled you to do, so the two of us are your only choice. You're not going to get what you want, Rose. This stopped being fun a long time ago. If you don't want me to snap, then I would suggest dropping the subject. I have been more than patient with you."

The two of them froze when a noise came from inside the garage. Tyra took a step back from Rose "Is that you, puss cat? Are you trapped?" she called out. Rose glanced at Tyra out of the corner of her eye but focussed back on the cat that was more than likely trapped in the garage. She jumped when more noises and thumping came through the door "Not going to open it," Rose mumbled to herself "Not going to open it, not going to open… Oh…" She gently opened the door as a big ball of scribble knocked her down.

Tyra snorted as the Doctor came running, his sonic in hand "Stay still," he shouted. With the help of his screwdriver, the ball became hand-sized, falling right into Rose's hand "Okay?"

"Yeah," Rose breathed, scowling at the sight of Tyra's grin "Cheers."

"No probs," the Doctor shrugged, taking the ball from the blonde "I'll give you a fiver if you can tell me what the hell it is." He held the ball up to his face and frowned "Because I haven't got the foggiest."

Rose huffed "Well, I can tell you, you've just killed it."

The Doctor shook his head "It was never living. Just animated by energy. The same energy that's snatching people. That is so dinky. The go-anywhere creature. Fits in your pocket, makes friends, impresses the boss, breaks the ice at parties."

"I think you're overestimating that thing," Tyra grinned "The only point I agree with is the fitting in your pocket part. Why would you even want to take it to parties?"

"Why not?" the Doctor questioned "It is rather nifty."

"Nifty is not what I would call it," Tyra muttered, following the Doctor to the Tardis.

* * *

The ball was sitting on the console, being examined "Oh, hi ho, here we go," the Doctor exclaimed "Let's have a look." He read the information on the screen and blinked in surprise "Get out of here."

"What's it say?" Rose questioned curiously, practically hanging from the Doctor's shoulder.

The Doctor glanced at her, shifting out of her grip to grab a pencil with one hand and the ball with the other. He used the eraser part of the pencil to rub some of the ball out "It is," he breathed "It's graphite. Basically, the same material as an HB pencil."

Tyra coughed out a laugh "You got attacked by a pencil scribble, Rose?"

"Yeah, yeah," she rolled her eyes with a huff "Laugh it up. I didn't see you helping…" She turned to the Doctor "I was attacked by a pencil scribble though?"

"Scribble creature," the Doctor corrected "Brought into being with ionic energy. Whatever we're dealing with, it can create things as well as take them. But why make a scribble creature?"

Rose hummed "Maybe it was a mistake. I mean, you scribble over something when you want to get rid of it. Like a – like a drawing."

"Like a child's drawing," Tyra added in realisation "That girl in the window earlier." She exchanged a look with Rose "Did you see her too?"

"Of course," the Doctor shouted before he blinked at the girls "What girl?"

Rose nodded at Tyra, her mind wandering away from wanting to be a vampire, Damon's compulsion kicking in without her realising "Something about her gave me the creeps," she admitted "Even her own mum looked scared of her."

"Are you two deducting?" the Doctor asked in surprise.

"Well, someone has to, what with you being as oblivious as you are," Tyra mocked good-naturedly.

The Doctor cuffed her over the back of the head lightly "Less cheek out of you."

"Erm, guys? The girl," Rose coughed, startling the Doctor and Tyra out of their staring match.

"Right," the Doctor nodded, striding back out of the Tardis with purpose before stopping in the middle of the street "Right… Which house is it again?"

Tyra shook her head at him and pointed to the left "That one."

* * *

The Doctor reached out to rattle the letterbox as well as ringing the doorbell when Tyra caught his hand "Someone's coming."

The dark-skinned woman from earlier opened the door, eyeing the group suspiciously "Hello," the Doctor waved "I'm the Doctor and these are Rose and Tyra. Can we see your daughter?"

"No," the woman snapped "You can't."

The Doctor shrugged "Okay. Bye." With that, the three time-travellers turned around, walking off.

"Why?" she called out, stopping them in their tracks "Why do you want to see Chloe?"

"Well, there's some interesting stuff going on in this street and I just thought…" the Doctor explained "Well, we thought that she might like to give us a hand."

Rose nodded in agreement "Sorry to bother you," she added.

"Yeah, sorry. We'll let you get on with things," the Doctor apologised "On your own. Bye again."

The woman closed her eyes for a moment, her expression turning from angry to helpless and vulnerable in the space of a second "Wait. Can you help her?"

The Doctor smiled gently "Yes, I can."

She took a deep breath and nodded, stepping back and motioned for them to follow her inside the house "I'm Trish, by the way. Sorry, I can't remember your names."

"That's alright," Rose told her "I'm Rose. That's the Doctor and Tyra."

In the living room, the television was one, showing the torchbearer "_The Torch Bearer is running up the Mall, which I can tell you is…_" The news guy was cut off by Trish muting the TV as Rose sat herself down on the sofa, while Tyra leaned against the wall next to her.

"She stays in her room most of the time," Trish explained "I try talking to her but it's like speaking to a brick wall. She gives me nothing, just asks to be left alone."

Rose looked up at her "What about Chloe's dad?"

Trish immediately went tense "Chloe's dad died a year ago."

Tyra bit her lip at the reaction, more than aware of what that reaction most likely meant. She herself and her siblings had that exact reaction whenever Mikael was mentioned "I'm sorry," Tyra told her quietly.

She snorted "You wouldn't be if you'd known him."

Tyra shook her head "I'm sorry for what you went through."

The Doctor rested his hand on her shoulder lightly, ignoring Trish's curious look "Well, let's go and say hi."

"I should check on her first," Trish shifted, hesitating for a second "She might be asleep."

"Why are you afraid of her, Trish?" the Doctor murmured.

She swallowed before straightening up "I want you to know before you see her that she's really a great kid."

"I'm sure she is," Tyra told her softly.

"She's never been in trouble at school," Trish told them, sounding like a proud mother "You should see her report from last year. A's and B's."

Rose coughed lightly "Can I use your loo?"

The woman nodded as Tyra turned to watch Rose leave the room with a frown "She's in the choir," Trish continued "She's singing in an old folks' home. Any mum would be proud. You know…" She trailed off at the sound of small footsteps coming from the stairs "I want you to know these things before you see her. Because right now, she's not herself."

The Doctor nodded before leaning over to glance into the kitchen "Alright, there?" he called as the two of them walked into the kitchen with Trish "I'm the Doctor."

"I'm Chloe Webber," the girl said, putting the milk carton back into the fridge.

Tyra smiled lightly "Nice to meet you, Chloe."

"How're you doing, Chloe Webber?" the Doctor asked.

Chloe narrowed her eyes "I'm busy. I'm making something, aren't I, mum?"

Trish paled lightly, throwing them an apologetic look "And as I said, she's not been sleeping."

"But you've been drawing, though," the Doctor remarked, glancing at the girl's hands "I'm rubbish. Stickmen about my limit. Can do this, though." He gave her a Vulcan salute.

Tyra jabbed her elbow in his side, shaking her head "Are you serious?"

"Can you do that?"

Chloe barely looked at him "They don't stop moaning."

"Chloe," Trish warned.

"I try to help them," she insisted "But they don't stop moaning."

The Doctor tilted his head "Who don't?"

"We can be together," Chloe murmured.

Trish leaned down to look at her daughter, reaching out to pull her into a hug "Sweetheart."

"Don't touch me, mum," she jerked back.

Tyra's head snapped up when she heard something coming from upstairs "What is she doing?" she mumbled under her breath.

"Ty?"

"_I'm coming,_" a deep, menacing voice called from upstairs.

The Doctor grabbed Tyra's shoulder "What's wrong?"

Tyra opened and closed her mouth a couple of times "Doctor, there's…"

"Doctor," Rose called hurriedly.

"That," Tyra finished, running after the Doctor and up the stairs.

"_I'm coming to hurt you,_" the voice taunted, causing Tyra to shiver a little.

The Doctor shut the door, cutting off the light coming from the closet. Rose stared at him with wide eyes "Look at it."

"No," the Doctor snapped before walking around the room, looking at the pictures.

Trish who had frozen at the sound of the voice whirled around to look at Rose "What the hell was that?"

"A drawing," Rose explained "The face of a man."

"What face?"

Tyra grabbed a hold of her arm gently "Trish. Don't."

She shook her off and narrowed her eyes on her daughter "What've you been drawing?"

"I drew him yesterday," Chloe admitted with a shrug.

"Who?"

The little girl looked up "Dad."

"Your dad?" Trish blinked "But he's long gone. Chloe, with all the lovely things in the world, why him?"

"I dream about him, staring at me," Chloe admitted.

Tyra walked over to stand next to the Doctor, trying desperately not to think about her own father. She hated whenever the memories were brought up. She had been having nightmares ever since she had seen him in the 50s. Thankfully, she had managed to act normally but she was exhausted and all the reminders were killing her. Why did it seem like Mikael was around every corner nowadays? It was like a freaking omen or something. Tyra hated every second of it. She preferred Niklaus at his very worst to their father at his best "What is that?" she asked quietly, looking over the drawings.

The Doctor glanced down, immediately noticing the look on her face "Hey, are you alright?"

Tyra looked away "I'm fine. Focus on helping Chloe. She's more important."

"That's not true," he argued, glancing at the group of three across the room.

"Maybe not," Tyra shrugged "But they have their healing process still ahead of them. Focus your attention on them. My problems are still going to be there after this whole mess."

The Doctor squeezed her hand for a moment before turning to Chloe "Tell us about the drawings, Chloe."

"I don't want to hear any more of this," Trish snapped.

"But that drawing of her dad," Rose argued "I heard a voice. He spoke. Tyra, did you hear it too?" Tyra just looked at her quietly before she nodded lightly.

Trish wrapped her arms around herself in a hug "He's dead. And these, they're kid's pictures. Now get out."

"Chloe has a power," Rose murmured, looking at the child curiously "And I don't know how but she used it to take Danny Edwards and Dale Hicks. She's using it to snatch the kids."

"Get out," Trish spat, glaring at Rose.

Rose shook her head "Have you seen those drawings move?"

"I haven't seen anything," Trish lied.

The Doctor sighed lowly "Yes, you have, out of the corner of your eye."

"No," Trish denied.

"And you dismissed it," the Doctor continued, ignoring her protests "Because what choice do you have when you see something you can't possibly explain? You dismissed it, right? And if anyone mentions it, you get angry, so it's never spoken of, ever again."

Trish looked away "She's a child."

"You're terrified of her," Tyra murmured, seeing the look in the woman's eyes.

The Doctor put a silencing hand on her shoulder "There's nowhere to turn to, because who's going to believe the things you see out of the corner of your eye? No one. Except for me."

"Who are you?" Trish breathed.

"I'm help," the Doctor said, staring into Trish's eyes.

* * *

Down in the kitchen, the Doctor swiped a jar of jam off the kitchen counter as he leaned against it. He unscrewed the lid and dipped his fingers in it, sticking them into his mouth. Tyra grabbed the jar out of his hands with a small sigh and shot an apologetic grin at Trish. The Doctor glanced over at the woman as well, only to see her eying him cautiously. He gave a sheepish shrug, playing with the lid that he was still holding.

"Those pictures," Rose started, rolling her eyes at the Doctor's antics "They're alive. She's drawing people and they end up in her pictures."

"Ionic energy," the Doctor added "Chloe's harnessing it to steal those kids and place them in some kind of holding pen made up of ionic power."

Rose leaned back "And what about the dad from hell in her wardrobe?"

"Rose," Tyra warned, not liking the other girl bringing up a subject as uncomfortable as this.

"How many times do I have to tell you, he's dead?" Trish snapped.

Rose huffed "Well, he's got a very loud voice for a dead bloke."

"Stop it, Rose," Tyra hissed "Drop it, alright?"

"If living things can become drawings," the Doctor cut in before the girls could start fighting "Then maybe drawings can become living things. Chloe's real dad is dead but not the one who visits her in her nightmares. That dad seems very real. That's the dad she has drawn and he's a heartbeat away from crashing into this world."

Trish sighed, looking down at her fingers "She always got the worst of it when he was alive."

"You shouldn't blame yourself," Tyra told her "People like him will always find a reason to hurt others. I don't think you would have been able to stop him."

"How do you know so much?" Trish asked.

Tyra met her eyes for a moment "I think you know."

"Doctor, how can a twelve-year-old girl be doing any of this?" Rose asked, ignoring what Trish and Tyra had been talking about. It was a topic she wouldn't even try to get into. Her mother had always been loving, doing everything for her even while Rose wasn't necessarily the most grateful.

The Doctor looked up at the ceiling "Let's find out." He strode out of the room and back up the stairs. Tyra followed him up the stairs where Chloe was sitting on her bed. As soon as they walked into the room, Chloe held up her hand in the Vulcan gesture the Doctor had shown her earlier "Nice one," the Doctor complimented before kneeling before Chloe, holding her head in his hands, fingers on her temples. Her eyes immediately rolled back into her head for a moment before closing. The Doctor was using a technique that was similar to the one Tyra had used to draw him out of his unconscious state after the regeneration. He closed his own eyes before Chloe suddenly fell backwards onto the bed with the Doctor catching her "There we go…"

Trish surged forward "I can't let him do this."

"Shush," Rose mumbled, her eyes on the Doctor "It's okay. Trust him."

The Doctor straightened up and looked down at the child on the bed "Now we can talk."

"I want Chloe," Chloe spoke up in a raspy whisper, the voice clearly not her own "Wake her up. I want Chloe."

"Who are you?" the Doctor frowned.

Chloe huffed "I want Chloe Webber."

"What've you done to my little girl?" Trish demanded, her hand reaching out to grasp Tyra's. She glanced at the woman for a second before choosing not to say anything about the hard grip she had on her hand.

Rose stepped forward "Doctor, what is it?"

The Doctor walked around the bed slowly until he was on Chloe's right, glancing over at Trish "I'm speaking to you," he started, turning his attention back to the entity inside the girl "The entity that is using this Human child. I request parley in compliance with the Shadow Proclamation."

"I don't care about shadows or parleys," Chloe rasped.

"So, what do you care about?" the Doctor tilted his head.

Chloe shifted "I want my friends."

"You're lonely," the Doctor realised "I know. Identify yourself."

"I am one of many," the girl said "I travel with my brothers and sisters. We take an endless journey. A thousand of your lifetimes. But now I am alone. I hate it. It's not fair and I hate it."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes "Name yourself."

"Isolus."

"You're Isolus," the Doctor breathed "Of course."

"Our journey began in the Deep Realms when we were a family," Chloe explained, her hand starting to move rapidly as she spoke.

Trish craned her neck "What's that?"

"The Isolus Mother," the Doctor murmured "Drifting in deep space. See, she jettisons millions of fledgeling spores. Her children. The Isolus are empathic beings of intense emotions but when they're cast off from their mother, their empathic link, their need for each other, is what sustains them. They need to be together. They cannot be alone."

Chloe stopped drawing "Our journey is long."

The Doctor nodded and continued to explain "The Isolus children travel, each inside a pod. They ride the heat and energy of solar tides. It takes thousands and thousands of years for them to grow up."

Rose gasped "Thousands of years just floating through space. Poor things. Don't they go mad with boredom?"

"We play," the Isolus exclaimed.

"You… play?" Rose repeated incredulously.

The Doctor turned around "While they travel, they play games. They use their ionic power to literally create make-believe worlds in which to play."

"In-flight entertainment," Rose joked.

"Helps keep them happy," the Doctor shrugged "While they're happy, they can feed off of each other's love. Without it, they're lost. Why did you come to Earth?"

The Isolus huffed "We were too close." She started drawing again.

"That's a solar flare from your sun," the Doctor remarked "Would have made a tidal wave of solar energy that scattered the Isolus pods."

"Only I fell to Earth," the Isolus pouted "My brothers and sisters are left up there and I cannot reach them. So alone."

The Doctor rubbed a hand over his head making his hair stick up everywhere "Your pod crashed. Where is it?"

"My pod was drawn to heat and I was drawn to Chloe Webber," she said "She was like me, alone. She needed me and I, her."

"You empathised with her," Tyra mumbled, staring at the girl on the bed "She was just as alone as you were."

The Isolus grumbled "I want my family. It's not fair."

"I understand," the Doctor soothed "You want to make a family. But you can't stay in this child. It's wrong. You can't steal any more friends for yourself."

"I am alone," the Isolus whined as a crash sounded from the wardrobe again. A red glow shone from inside as the door shook along with Chloe.

"_I'm coming to hurt you,_" Chloe's dad called out "_I'm coming._"

"Trish, how do you calm her?" the Doctor asked, quickly turning to look at the woman as Chloe's body started jerking in fear. Her face was impassive but her body was showing the fear that Tyra could feel radiating from her.

"What?" the woman asked, dropping Tyra's hand to sit down next to her daughter.

The Doctor gestured "When she has nightmares, what do you do?"

"I – I," Trish stuttered.

"What do you do?"

Trish licked her lips "I sing to her."

"Then start singing," the Doctor urged, his eyes trained on the closet. Tyra inched between the bed and the closet, ready in case something worse happened.

Trish grabbed her daughter's hand and started singing slowly "Kookaburra sits in the old gum tree. Merry, merry king of the bush is he…"

"_Chloe, Chloe, Chloe, Chloe._"

"Laugh," Trish's voice cracked a little "Kookaburra laugh, Kookaburra, gay your life must be. Laugh, Kookaburra laugh, Kookaburra, gay your life must be." Chloe fell asleep at the same time as the wardrobe fell silent. Trish sniffed, wiping at her tears "He came to her because she was lonely. Chloe, I'm sorry." She buried her head in her daughter's shoulder, her arms around the girl in a tight hug as she sobbed.

Tyra bit down on her lip harshly. She wanted to tell Trish that it wasn't her fault but like with Tommy, it felt wrong for her to give advice. Especially now, that Mikael kept haunting her dreams again. He might be trapped in a tomb but that didn't mean that he would stay in there forever. Tyra glanced at the two on the bed one more time before she hurried out of the room. Downstairs, she sank down on the sofa, her hands buried in her hair.

"You okay?" the Doctor asked quietly, sitting down next to her.

Tyra flinched, having been too lost in her thoughts to hear him come in "Yes. I'm fine," she told him.

He wrapped his arms around her "I will always worry about you. I know that you're still scared of your father."

"Don't," Tyra shook her head. She didn't want to talk about it. Not now.

"Ty, it's –"

Tyra shot up "I said don't," she snapped, storming out of the house. As soon as she was outside, she calmed down. The light wind ruffled her hair as she watched Kel working on the street. She leaned back against the outer wall of the house, drinking in the momentary peacefulness.

* * *

"I'm sorry," Tyra mumbled as she rejoined the others in the living room "I shouldn't have snapped at you."

The Doctor tilted her head up, his hands bracketing her face gently "I shouldn't have made you talk. Not here. We never talked about things outside of the Tardis and I'm sorry that I forgot that."

"It's not your fault," Tyra shook her head "It's this whole situation and the night…"

"Nightmares?" the Doctor finished when Tyra broke off "Why didn't you tell me?"

Tyra shrugged and was about to respond when Trish walked into the room, causing the Doctor to let go of the girl "Chloe usually got the brunt of his temper when he'd had a drink," she spoke up softly "The day he crashed the car, I thought we were free. I thought it was over."

"Did you talk to her about it?" Rose asked, glancing over at Tyra. Despite everything, she could quite stop the worry welling up inside of her. Tyra really looked awful. She seemed extremely tired and it confused Rose because she had looked normal just a few hours ago. Rose frowned at her own thoughts and shook her head. It wasn't the time to worry about this.

Trish shook her head "I didn't want to."

"You were trying to avoid it," Tyra murmured in understanding "I can tell you now that it doesn't work that way. Avoiding the subject made Chloe feel alone, feel like she couldn't talk to you about her nightmares."

The Doctor grasped Tyra's hand in his again "Her and the Isolus. Two lonely kids who need each other."

"And it won't stop," Rose realised "Will it, Doctor? It'll just keep pulling kids in."

"It's desperate to be loved," the Doctor nodded "It's used to a pretty big family."

Everyone looked at him "How big?" they asked in trepidation.

He pulled on his earlobe uncomfortably "Say around four billion?"

* * *

The Doctor looked down the street "We need that pod."

"It crashed," Rose pointed out, following the Doctor and Tyra down the street "Won't it be destroyed?"

The Doctor hummed "Well, it's been sucking in all the heat it can. Hopefully, that should keep it in a fit state to launch. It must be close. It should have a weak energy signature that the Tardis can trace. Once we find it, then we can stop the Isolus." They reached the open area close to the Tardis "We can scan for the same trace that I picked up from the scribble creature. We'd need to widen the field a bit."

Tyra curled up on the jump seat, watching the Doctor building some gizmo that will help him find the pod. Her mind was on Chloe and whether or not she should talk to her once the Isolus was gone. Maybe she could stop her and Trish from becoming as broken as her siblings and she have become.

"You knew the Isolus was lonely before it told you," Rose spoke up after a while "How?"

The Doctor barely glanced at her "I know what it's like to travel a long way on your own." He paused for a second before continuing "Give me to styner-magnetic… The thing in your left hand."

Rose handed it over "Sounds like you're on its side."

"I sympathise, that's all," the Doctor mumbled.

"The Isolus has caused a lot of pain for these people."

Tyra shook her head "From what I've heard the Isolus is a child."

"That's why it went to Chloe," the Doctor added "Two lonely mixed-up kids."

"Yes, and I know what kids can be like," Rose shrugged "Right little terrors."

The Doctor held out his hand "Gum."

Rose spat her gum into his hand "I've got cousins. Kids can't have it all their own way. That's part of being a family."

"What about trying to understand them?" the Doctor asked.

"Or helping them understand when they do something wrong and how to avoid doing it again?" Tyra finished.

Rose looked from the Doctor to Tyra "Easy for you to say. You don't have kids. Either of you."

"I was a dad once," the Doctor admitted quietly before focussing back on building whatever he was building.

Tyra looked at his back, wholly unsurprised. He was so old that she had no doubt that he had a family before. That and she vaguely remembered the Doctor mentioning that he once travelled with his granddaughter, Susan. He hadn't gone into detail on that part of his life but Tyra didn't mind. He would tell her once he was ready "I took care of the kids under my protection," Tyra said to Rose "Made sure that their families had what they needed."

"What did you say?" Rose blinked, staring at the Doctor in shock.

The Doctor used Rose's chewing gum to fix a component in place and then closed the lid on the glass globe containing the gizmo "I think we're there. Fear, loneliness. They're the big ones, Rose. Some of the most terrible acts ever committed have been inspired by them. We're not dealing with something that wants to conquer or destroy. There's a lot of things you need to get across this universe. Warp drive, wormhole refractors. You know the thing you need most of all? You need a hand to hold."

"Doctor," Tyra spoke up, pointing at the scanner. There was something registering but she couldn't understand anything other than the fact that the Tardis had found the pod. Where it was, she didn't know.

"It's the pod," he exclaimed "It is in the street. Everything's coming up Doctor. Come on." He grabbed his gizmo and ran out of the Tardis, back to the street "Okay," he started "It's about two inches across. Dull grey, like a gull's egg. Very light."

Rose hummed "So these pods they travel from sun to sun using heat, yeah? So, it's not all about love and stuff. Doesn't the pod just need that?"

Tyra inhaled and started coughing at the strong metal smell "Rose," she called at the same time as the Doctor's gizmo shattered on the ground.

"Doctor?" He was gone along with the Tardis.

Rose and Tyra exchanged a look "Chloe," they chorused before taking off down the street. Rose hammered on Trish's door until the woman opened. Without a word, Rose pushed past her, running upstairs.

"It's okay," Trish soothed "I've taken all the pencils off her."

Tyra glanced over her shoulder "You didn't," she explained "The Doctor's gone." Tyra reached the bedroom in time to see Rose snatch a drawing of the Doctor and the Tardis.

"Leave me alone," Chloe shouted, throwing the nearest object at Rose "I want to be with Chloe Webber. I love Chloe Webber."

Rose glared at the Isolus "Bring him back, now."

"No."

"Don't you realise what you've done?" Rose questioned harshly "He was the only one who could help you. Now bring him back."

Chloe shook her head harshly "Leave me alone. I love Chloe Webber."

When Rose made to snap again, Tyra stopped her "Child, remember?" She knelt down next to the Isolus "Listen, I know that you love Chloe but you love your brothers and sisters too, am I right? And your mother? Think about how Chloe's mum feels like now that Chloe isn't here." She glanced up at Rose "Let's go and find that pod."

Rose nodded and turned to Trish "Don't leave her alone, no matter what." They went back outside, leaving the woman to watch over her daughter.

"Heat," Rose mumbled, glancing around. Her eyes landed on Kel who was admiring his latest tarmac patch "They travel on heat."

As soon as the two girls were close enough, Kel pointed at his patch "Look at this finish. Smooth as a baby's bottom. Not a bump or a lump."

"Kel, was there anything in this street in the last few days giving off a lot of heat?" Rose asked.

"I mean, you can eat your dinner off this," Kel breathed in awe "So you tell me why the other one's got a lump in it when I gave it the same love and craftsmanship as I did this one."

Tyra blinked "Er… Rose? Fresh tarmac. Heat."

„Of course," Rose groaned „Six days, Kel. Think back six days."

Kel hummed and gestured to the pothole in front of them "When I was laying this the first time around." Rose looked down before running off. Tyra was about to ask what she was doing when she saw Rose heading for the council van "Hey, that's a council van. Out."

"Ty," Rose called out, chucking a pickaxe from the back of the van to Tyra.

"Woah, wait, wait, wait," Kel exclaimed "You just removed a council axe from a council van. Put it back. No, don't, wait. Put the axe back in the van." Tyra spun the pickaxe around in her hand and carefully dropped it in the pothole. There was a chance of hitting the spaceship, so she wasn't using as much strength as she could have "No. You, stop! You just removed a council axe from a council van and now you're digging up a council road. I'm reporting you two to the council."

Tyra dropped to her knees, searching through the loose tar "I got it," she called, holding the tiny spaceship in her hand.

Rose snatched it away to study it closer "It went for the hottest thing in the street. Your tar."

"What is it?" Kel blinked.

"It's a spaceship," Rose explained "Not a council spaceship, I'm afraid."

The two girls turned and ran back to the house, leaving Kel to stand in front of the rubble that was his formerly done pothole "We found it," Rose shouted as she saw Trish "I don't know what to do with it but maybe the Isolus will just hop on board. Hand on," she blinked, seeing the woman in the living room "I told you not to leave her."

"_My God,_" the commentator gasped "_What's going on here?_" Tyra pushed past them, seeing that the crowds of the stadium along with all the athletes have vanished completely.

Kel entered behind us "I don't care if you've got Snow White and the Seven Dwarves buried under there, you don't go digging up…"

Tyra grabbed his arm and jabbed her finger at the television "Look."

"_The crowd has vanished. Er, they're gone. Everyone has gone. Thousands of people have just gone,_" the commentator stuttered "_Right in front of my eyes. It's impossible. Bob, can we join you in the box? Bob?_" The picture cut to two empty chairs "_Not you too, Bob?_"

"The stadium won't be enough," Rose remarked "The Isolus has four billion brothers and sisters…"

Everyone bolted up to Chloe's room, trying to open the door "Chloe?" Trish called out.

"Chloe, it's Rose and Tyra," Rose shouted urgently "Open the door."

Tyra took one look at the door and sighed "Sorry in advance, Trish," Tyra mumbled before placing a hard kick to the lock part of the door. The chair crashed to the floor and the door opened easily "There. Problem one solved."

"We found your ship," Rose spoke up, starting to walk toward Chloe. She froze though when the closet came back to life.

"_I'm coming to hurt you,_" the voice of Chloe's dad taunted from inside "_I'm coming…_"

By now, Chloe had the outline of the Earth on the wall and had started colouring it in "We've got to stop her," Rose pointed out, starting forward. As soon as she did, the wardrobe rattled violently, the growling becoming louder.

"If you stop Chloe Webber, I will let him out," the Isolus threatened "We will let him out together."

"Do you really think Chloe would want that?" Tyra asked, looking around the room "She will never forgive you if you hurt her mother or set free the nightmare she is so scared of." Her gaze stopped on the drawing of the Doctor who was starting to move around.

"Look, I got your pod," Rose pointed out, holding up the small spaceship.

The Isolus barely looked at it "The pod is dead."

"It only needs heat," Rose shrugged.

"It needs more than heat," the Isolus huffed, not pausing in her drawing.

Kel exhaled shakily "I'm not being funny or anything but that picture just moved. And that one."

"_Is still on its way,_" the man on the television reported "_I suppose it's much more than a torch now, it's a beacon. It's a beacon of hope and fortitude and courage. And it's a beacon of love._"

"Rose, get the pod to the torch. You heard it. Love… Maybe that will be enough to get that pod going," Tyra told her "I'll stay and make sure she doesn't finish that picture." When Rose hesitated, Tyra snapped "Go."

As Rose ran out of the house with Kel, Tyra turned to the shaking closet and glanced at the Isolus. She just hoped that Rose would hurry up because she didn't dare to get closer to that closet. Chloe was afraid of the man and Tyra would rather die a hundred times than to be the one responsible for letting him out. Picture or not.

Then, all of a sudden, Chloe stopped. She had nearly finished colouring in the Earth when she just froze, her eyes going wide "I can go home," the Isolus breathed happily "Goodbye, Chloe Webber. I love you."

Chloe's eyes rolled into the back of her head as the tiny creature floated out of her mouth. Tyra flashed over, steadying the girl as she blinked lethargically for a moment "Mum?"

"I'm here," Trish smiled, tears in her eyes.

Chloe dropped her pencil, running into her mother's arms "Mummy."

"I hate to be the bearer of bad news," Tyra spoke up carefully, eyeing the wardrobe "But the drawing in there is still moving."

Trish's eyes went wide "What?"

"Come on," Tyra grabbed their arms "Out. Now." She herded them down the stairs to the front door as quickly as possible when it slammed shut directly in front of them "Dammit."

"Trish," Rose called from outside "Get out."

Tyra glanced over her shoulder "Rose, go look for the Doctor. I'll try and get this over with."

"You mean he's not in there?" Rose frowned.

"No," she blinked "You know him. He's as bad at wandering off as we are. Now go."

"_Chloe,_" the deep voice of the girl's father called out "_I'm coming to hurt you._"

Chloe cowered against the door, whimpering "Please, dad. No more." Tyra swallowed heavily, remembering a time when this was her.

"_Chloe._"

Tyra dropped to her knees in front of Chloe, glancing at Trish who had her arms wrapped around her daughter tightly "Chloe, you have to listen to me, alright? Are you listening?"

"Help us," Trish breathed.

"I'm trying," Tyra shot back, reaching out to make Chloe look her in the eyes "Look, I know that you're scared but you're so brave. While other kids are scared of the monster hiding under their beds or in their closets, you know what a real monster is like. The fear that he inspires is overwhelming, isn't it? Your pain is unimaginable and your fear unbearable but believe me when I say that all they are now are memories." Tyra jabbed her finger over her shoulder "That thing up there is just a memory, Chloe."

Trish stared at Tyra with panic in her eyes "How is that helping?"

"Just…" Tyra broke off "Okay… Memories, they can bring you down. Hard… But they can also make you so much stronger. Even stronger than the people who hurt us. The bad memories can make us – they can give you the strength to become a superhero. Isn't that awesome? You can be a superhero and beat the bad guys because let's face it, superheroes always beat the villain in the stories."

The voice upstairs got quieter along with the banging and Tyra let out a small breath, grabbing Chloe's hand "How about the three of us stop him together, hm?" She looked at Trish and held out her other hand to her "We just have to tell him 'No. No more, Mr Bad Guy. You're not hurting us anymore. I won't let you hurt us.' It's alright to be scared, Chloe and one day you'll be able to look back and the monsters will be gone."

The light faded completely, as did the man's voice. Tyra's shoulders slumped in relief "You have a loving mother, kid. She would do anything for you and she will always be there. Now, I want you to promise me something. Can you do that?"

"Y – Yeah," Chloe nodded, her face set in determination.

Tyra smiled shakily, trying to pull her mask back up "I want you to promise me that you will look after your mum just like she looks after you. To always be there for her, just as she will always be here for you. Can you do that for me?"

"I promise," Chloe nodded before turning to her mother who had tears in her eyes "I promise, mum."

Trish let out a sob, pulling her daughter into a tight embrace "Oh, Chloe. I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry."

Tyra straightened from her uncomfortable position, moving over to slide down the wall. Her eyes slid closed as a memory pushed to the forefront of her mind.

_Flashback_

"_Well," a voice spoke up behind Tyra, making her freeze "It certainly seems as if you have made a life for yourself, girl. You and your siblings."_

_Tyra clenched her fingers into the bark of the tree. She should have gone with the others. It had been stupid to stay behind but she had hoped… Well, she had hoped that Mikael would find her. She had been nothing but a shell of her former self ever since Henrik died and her brothers and sister were only concerned with themselves. She understood… This whole life was something new, something that they had never experienced before but it didn't mean that she deserved to be left behind._

_Mikael spun his daughter around by the shoulder, pinning her against the tree trunk with more force than strictly necessary "Where are your siblings, girl?" He raised his eyebrows at her silence "Well? Do speak up." Tyra let out a grunt when she was thrown into a tree a couple of feet away, falling to the ground with a dull thump. Mikael stalked over, raising her to her knees, his hand clenched in his fist tightly "Where are they?"_

"_I don't know," Tyra murmured, her neck still being bent back in an uncomfortable angle "They left."_

"_You want me to think that they left you behind?" Mikael laughed in disbelief "Do not take me for a fool, little haukr. Where. Are. They?"_

"_I don't know," she insisted, tears starting to run down her face._

_Mikael gritted his teeth and threw her to the side again, sneering when he noticed the tears "You're weak, girl. As weak as that bastard of your mother." With that, he twisted her neck, stalking off angrily. He would find Niklaus if it was the last thing he did. They had to be here somewhere… If they hadn't left Tyra until now, why would they do so now?  
_

* * *

"_Here," Kol called out, causing Finn to hurry over to where the voice had come from. They had been looking for Tyra since they noticed that she hadn't been with them for a while. Both Elijah and Niklaus thought that she was just pouting because they had made her leave but Kol had known better. After a week of Tyra not appearing, Kol and Finn split form their siblings, tracing their steps back to find her._

_Finn fell to his knees next to their sister and gasped when he saw her "What…" He reached out, carefully running his fingers through her hair, exposing her tear-stained face "Oh, what happened to you, little one?"_

_Tyra let out a low groan, trying to curl away from the hands when she registered that she wasn't alone "I'm sorry," she breathed, squeezing his eyes shut "Please, I don't know where they are."_

"_Ty," Kol called out quietly, drawing his hands back before motioning for Finn to do the same "Ty, it's alright. We're here."_

_Tyra turned her head toward the voice, not opening her eyes "Why did you come?"_

_Finn raised an eyebrow "You didn't really think we would leave you behind, did you?"_

"_Finn?" Tyra blinked "Kol?" _

_The two boys exchanged worried looks "We're here, Ty." Finn reached out, pulling Tyra up and into his chest._

_She stiffened, fighting against the grip "No, please. I'm sorry, Father. I didn't… Henri…"_

"_Oh, Ty," Kol sighed, hating to see his sister's pain. She hadn't been herself since Henrik died and it hurt them all to see her as withdrawn as she was. That's when the rest of her words registered "Tyra, was Father here?"_

_She nodded, slumping against her oldest brother's chest when she realised that the danger was over "He wanted Nik."_

_End Flashback_

Small arms wound themselves around her neck, causing Tyra to snap out of the memories. She had to hold herself back from reacting, just relaxing in the hold "Thank you," Chloe whispered into her neck.

Tyra climbed to her feet, hoisting the girl into her arms. She wondered whether it looked as funny as she felt since Tyra wasn't that much taller than Chloe but her weight was low enough for the vampire to pick her up easily "You're welcome. I know how hard it is to forget something like this but you can start healing now. Your father is gone and you have your mother."

"Yours isn't, is he?" Trish spoke up, tilting her head. A small smile crossed her face at the picture the two made "He's still around?"

Tyra took a deep breath and nodded "Somewhere. I haven't seen him in years but… He has the bad habit of appearing whenever my siblings and I get too comfortable."

"Didn't your mother help you?" Chloe asked, sending her mother a smile.

"No," Tyra mumbled "No, she never went against her husband. For me, the people I could mainly rely on were two of my older brothers. Everyone has a person who helps them through their memories, be it your mother, your siblings or even a friend. I found someone outside of my family who helps me leave my past behind and become the best person I can be."

"The Doctor," Trish realised "He's the person, right?"

Tyra nodded with a small grin "Yes." She glanced down at Chloe "Do you want to meet him? As yourself this time?"

"Can I?" Chloe breathed, staring up at her mother with wide, pleading eyes "Please, mum?"

Trish let out a small laugh "Sure. Be careful outside, okay?"

"Want to walk?" Tyra asked, nudging the girl she was still carrying.

Chloe's arms tightened around her neck "No," she mumbled childishly, causing Tyra to snort.

"Well, then," she sighed, making her way over to where Rose was standing with the Doctor "I see you survived." She turned to raise her eyebrow at Rose "Where did you find him, then?"

Rose rolled her eyes lightly "He was carrying the torch."

"Seriously?"

"Yup," the Doctor grinned "Now, why don't you introduce me to your limpet, Ty? Hello, Chloe. I'm not sure how much you remember but I'm the Doctor."

Tyra prodded Chloe's side when she didn't look up "You wanted to meet him," she reminded her quietly, setting her down on her feet.

"Hello," Chloe smiled shyly, holding out her hand.

The Doctor took it with exaggerated care and gave it a little squeeze "Do you want to come with us to look at the games, Chloe?"

"You're going?" Tyra asked. She wasn't really surprised though. They did come to see the games after all. Chloe bit her lip, glancing over at her house "How about you go and ask your mother if she wants to come along as well, hm?"

As soon as Chloe was gone, Tyra slumped against the Doctor, running a hand down her face to get rid of the tiredness that had started to set in "Are you alright?" the Doctor frowned, wrapping his arm around Tyra to steady her.

"No," she muttered, burying her face in his jacket "I'm not. But I have to be."

Rose looked over at them, feeling a twinge of jealousy "You know what? They keep on trying to split us up but they never will."

The Doctor looked away from Tyra "Never say never ever."

"Nah," Rose shook her head "We'll always be okay. Don't you reckon, Doctor?"

"There's something in the air," the Doctor pointed out, trepidation seeping into his voice "Something's coming."

Rose tilted her head "What?"

"A storm's approaching."

"Ty," Chloe called out from behind, making Tyra pull away, wiping all traces of tiredness from her face. She turned around just in time to catch Chloe.

Trish walked up to them, keeping an eye on her daughter. Without missing a beat, she pulled Tyra into a three-way hug between her and her daughter "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Tyra mumbled uncomfortably, shifting away from her.

She focussed her attention on Chloe, telling her a story of when her siblings and she were little while Trish was telling the Doctor about what she did earlier "Is she alright?" Trish asked quietly, her eyes glued to her daughter and the girl who had helped them.

The Doctor sighed "I don't know. This isn't easy for Ty," he murmured "We ran into her father not too long ago and… I'll talk to her later. She will be fine. I promise you."

"Good," Trish nodded "She deserves someone who cares for her."

"Yeah," the Doctor nodded, smiling as Chloe dragged Tyra off to look at something further down the street "She does."

* * *

As soon as they reached the Tardis, Tyra vanished into her room. She wanted to be alone when she let her masks fall again. That, and she was exhausted. Whenever Tyra felt like she had a chance of happiness, whenever she felt as if something good happened to her, Mikael appeared again. Whether through memories or in person. It wasn't fair.

Tyra curled up on her bed, back facing the door. She was close to dozing off when a knock sounded at the door. Despite her lack of reaction, the door opened and quiet footsteps came closer "That was very brave what you did back there," the Doctor whispered, sitting down behind her "I know how hard it must have been for you. After all, that happened recently…" Tyra turned her head to look at him, tears shining in her eyes. The Doctor sighed and got rid of his shoes, laying back on the bed as he held his arms out "Come here."

Tyra scooted over to him, burying herself in his arms "Do you think Chloe is going to be alright?"

"You know what? I think she is," he nodded "Both Chloe and Trish will be just fine. They can move on and live a happy life."

"Yeah… I guess so."


	14. Army of Ghosts

Tyra walked into the console room after finishing to get dressed. She had slept in the clothes from the day before and had been feeling somewhat gross after the Doctor had woken her up this morning.

"Don't you look… professional today," the Doctor remarked with a teasing grin.

Tyra rolled her eyes "Shut up," she huffed, looking down at her outfit. Since she had taken a liking to the more formal attire she had worn with Queen Victoria, she found herself quite a few similar outfits. A white button-up with a black waistcoat over it and to combat the sheer formality of it, she had put on a pair of ripped black skinny jeans and sneakers. All in all, this was starting to turn into one of her favourite outfits quickly. She liked the fact that it made her look older than some of her other clothes as well.

"It looks good though," the Doctor murmured quietly, turning back to the console.

"Thanks," Tyra snorted "I think…"

It was then that Rose appeared with a huge, red rucksack that – even for Tyra – looked as if it weighed a ton "I'm ready."

"Alright then," the Doctor exclaimed, throwing the Tardis into motion. It had been decided earlier that they would go back to London to visit Jackie for a little while. Tyra was sure that it was also for her sake after what happened with Chloe. The Doctor wanted to give her a little downtime without wanting to be too obvious about it. Whether he was trying to hide it or not, he was worried about how Tyra was doing "Here we are. Powell Estate."

Rose grinned excitedly, stepping out of the Tardis with the bag now slung over her shoulder. Tyra followed the Doctor quietly, looking around the playground they had landed in "It's funny," she murmured, ignoring the looks she was getting "How the whole world changed in… a few hundred years. Back then, we were playing with mud and stones and twigs."

"They still do that," the Doctor pointed out "It's just more now. Where is this coming from all of a sudden?"

Tyra shrugged "Honestly, I have no idea. Just came to mind."

The Doctor nodded, trying not to let her see how unconvinced he really was and held out his hand "Come on, let's go and visit Jackie."

"I'm sure that's what you're looking forward to the most," Tyra teased, placing her hand in his.

"Yeah," the Doctor muttered, walking after Rose.

* * *

"Mum, it's us," Rose shouted as she entered the flat "We're back."

"Oh, I don't know why you bother with that phone," Jackie cried out, hurrying over to them "You never use it."

Rose rolled her eyes "Just shut up and come here." She pulled her mother into a tight hug as the Doctor looked on with a smile.

"I love you so much," Jackie cried out. Tyra squeezed past them and was about to go to the living room when Jackie let go of Rose, turning her attention to her and the Doctor "Oh no, you don't." She grabbed him "Come here." With that, she planted a big kiss on him despite his continued protests. Tyra couldn't quite stop then grin from showing on her face when he tried to get her off him "Oh, you lovely big fella. Oh, you're all mine."

The Doctor shifted, his hands flailing around "Just… Just… Just put me down," he spoke, trying to speak over her.

"Yes, you are," Jackie continued, kissing him one more time before smiling at Tyra "Tyra."

"Hi, Jackie," Tyra nodded, allowing Jackie to pull her into a quick hug "It's good to see you again."

Jackie pressed a motherly kiss to her cheek "And you."

As soon as Jackie left them to go to the living room, Tyra turned to the Doctor "And that… is how you handle her."

"Oh, shut up," he grumbled, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. Tyra snorted, shaking her head at him "Tyra. Quiet."

"Sorry, sorry." She held up her hands in surrender, sliding past him to sit down on the couch in the living room.

Rose took off her backpack, handing it over to her mother "I've got loads of washing for you," she grinned "And… I got you this." She pulled out a little ornate bottle, holding it out with a wide smile "It's from the market on this asteroid bazaar. It's made of um…"

"Bazoolium," the Doctor answered her unspoken question when she looked at him, a little lost.

"Bazoolium," Rose nodded, turning back to her mother "When it gets cold – yeah – it means it's gonna rain when it's hot, it's gonna be sunny. You can use it to tell the weather."

Jackie looked at the object for a second before she put down the bag "I've got a surprise for you and all."

"Oh, I get her Bazoolium, she doesn't even say thanks," Rose muttered.

"Guess who's coming to visit," Jackie smiled "You're just in time. He'll be here at ten past. Who do you think it is?"

Rose tilted her head in confusion "I don't know."

"Oh, come on," her mother sighed in exasperation "Guess."

"No," Rose rolled her eyes "I hate guessing. Just tell me."

Jackie raised her eyebrow "It's your granddad," she told her daughter "Granddad Prentice. He's on his way any minute." She ignored Rose's confusion, turning to the kitchen "Right, cup of tea."

Rose was left in the living room with the other two, gaping after her "She's gone mad," Rose breathed, stunned.

"Tell me something new," the Doctor shook his head. Tyra reached over to hit him over the head with a pillow, rolling her eyes at him.

"Granddad Prentice, that's her dad," Rose explained "But he died like, ten years ago. Oh, my God. She's lost it. Mum?" She walked after her mother, leaning against the doorway of the kitchen "What you just said about granddad…"

Jackie turned around "Any second now."

"But he's passed away," Rose frowned, sounding very concerned "His heart gave out. Do you remember that?"

Jackie sent her a deadpan looked "Of course, I do."

"Then… How can he come back?" Rose asked, raising her eyebrow.

"Why don't you ask him yourself?" Jackie shook her head "Ten past. Here he comes." Tyra flinched back when an ethereal humanoid shape walked through the outside wall next to her, coming to a halt next to Jackie "Here we are, then. Dad, say hello to Rose. Ain't she grown?"

Tyra looked at the Doctor with a blink, only to see him run out of the apartment. She turned her head to Rose before following him out and down the block of flats to where they caught sight of what was happening "They're everywhere," the Doctor remarked in confusion. They really were everywhere too, standing around like ordinary people. Tyra stepped closer to one of them curiously, reaching out to touch it. Had she not been aware of the Other Side and what happened in the afterlife, she might have actually believed that they were ghosts.

Rose went to ask something when her eyes widened in alarm "Look out." The Doctor spun around right as a ghost walked through him. He squirmed uncomfortably, rubbing at his chest.

"They haven't got long," Jackie called out, joining us "Midday shift only lasts a couple of minutes. They're about to fade."

"What do you mean 'shift'?" the Doctor asked "Since when did ghosts have shifts? Since when did shifts have ghosts? What's going on?"

Tyra stepped up next to him "I honestly don't know. I can tell you one thing though… They are not ghosts. Excuse me." With that, she pulled out her phone and dialled Sienna's number. She hadn't heard from the witch in a while but then again, they didn't usually stay in regular contact. Since Tyra was out of reach from her siblings – not that she really cared much anymore – we only contacted each other when one needs something "Hey, it's me."

"_I was wondering when you'd call,_" Sienna replied, amusement in her voice "_You've seen them then?_"

"You think?" Tyra asked, rolling her eyes at the Doctor. She followed the others back to the flat, still talking to her witch friend "What do you know?"

Sienna sighed "_Not much more than you, most likely. We know they aren't ghosts. The Other Side is still intact, so it's not them. And there had never been any indication that other ghosts exist. Even if they would… Do you really think they would look like that?_"

"No," Tyra murmured, running a hand through her hair "I don't think so. Hold on a second, Sienna."

Her attention turned to the television that the Doctor had just switched on. It was a programme that was called Ghostwatch "_On today's Ghostwatch,_" the Host started "_Claims that some of the ghosts are starting to talk and there seems to be a regular formation gathering around Westminster Bridge. It's almost like a military display._"

"What the hell is going on?" the Doctor muttered to himself, changing the channel.

"_And tonight, we're expecting very strong ghosts from London, through the North and up into Scotland,_" a weatherman explained, gesturing to a map that had these Caspar the ghost things on it instead of the usual weather symbols.

Another channel, another programme about ghosts "_So basically, Eileen, what you're telling me is, that you're in love with a ghost…_"

The Doctor changed the channel again and Tyra snorted "_My ghost was pale and grey until I discovered Ectoshine…_"

"Ectoshine," she repeated "What the hell? Has everyone gone crazy?"

Several international news channels later, the Doctor gave up and turned to Jackie "It's all over the world."

"_Listen to me, Den Watts. I don't care if you have come back from the grave. Get out of my pub. The only spirits I'm serving in the place are gin, whisky and vodka. Do, you heard me. Get out._" With that, the Doctor turned off the tv with a disgusted shake of his head.

"Actually… That was surprisingly clever," Tyra mused before remembering that she had Sienna on the line "Listen, S. I'll – I'll call you back if I know more."

"When did it start?" the Doctor questioned, sitting down on the sofa next to Tyra.

Jackie scratched her cheek "Well, first of all, Peggy heard this noise in the cellar, so she goes down…"

"No," the Doctor cut her off "I meant worldwide."

"Oh," Jackie nodded "That was about two months ago. Just happened. Woke up one morning and there they all were. Ghosts, everywhere. We all ran around screaming and that. Whole planet was panicking. No sign of you, thank you very much. Then it sort of sank in. It took us time to realise that we're lucky."

Tyra tilted her head "Lucky? Lucky how?"

"And what makes you think it's granddad?" Rose added, glancing at Tyra from the corner of her eye.

Jackie shrugged at Rose's question "It just feels like him. There's that smell, those old cigarettes. Can't you smell it?"

"I wish I could, mum," Rose sighed "But I can't."

"You've got to make an effort," Jackie insisted "You've got to want it, sweetheart."

The Doctor's head tilted to the side "The more you want it, the stronger it gets."

"Sort of, yeah," Jackie nodded.

Tyra groaned "Oh, this is bad already. Why can't we have a normal day for once? Is one time too much to ask?"

"Oi," the Doctor huffed, nudging Tyra's ribs "Don't knock it. You know you like it."

Tyra was about to protest before she sighed in defeat "True. Although a day off would be nice every once in a while."

"I love it," Rose disagreed, her expression dreamy "I love the adventure, the running… The different planets."

"I never said that I didn't," Tyra pointed out "But there is a lot of running involved. I guess I'm just…" Tyra broke off, trying to think of what to say. Tired? Mentally exhausted? She didn't know what she even wanted them to know. Avoidance had always worked for her in the past – even avoiding Mikael… for the most part "Never mind."

The Doctor placed a hand on her arm "Are you alright?"

Tyra forced a smile onto her face "I'm fine. So… What do you think those ghosts are?"

"You mean they're not ghosts?" Rose asked "What are they then?"

Jackie looked at them in confusion "But they're Human, right? You can see them. They look Human."

"She's got a point," Rose shrugged "I mean, they're all sort of blurred but they're definitely people."

The Doctor grimaced, unsurely "Maybe not. They're pressing themselves into the surface of the world. But a footprint doesn't look like a boot." He glanced at Tyra and jerked his head to the door.

Tyra followed him out curiously "So… Do you have any idea what's going on?"

"No," the Doctor muttered, leading Tyra back to the Tardis "But I have a bad feeling about this."

"Not just you," Tyra sighed "The friend I called earlier. She mentioned a few things that make it clearer that the ghosts aren't actually ghosts."

The Doctor opened the door for her "What do you mean?"

Tyra bit her lip "You have heard of the Other Side, right?"

"Yeah," the Doctor gave back with a confused look "Why?"

"So, the Other Side holds every Supernatural being who died, right?" Tyra gestured "As far as we know it's separated by a veil of some sort… The only ghosts that I'm sure that exist are the people trapped there. And my friend told me that the veil is still up."

The Doctor hummed "Are you absolutely sure about that?"

Tyra nodded "Yeah. It would be a disaster if the veil falls. Everyone would know about it very early on. This is nothing that I know how to explain easily."

"Okay. So, we can cross out your side of the Supernatural," the Doctor nodded, disappearing under the grilling. He watched Tyra from underneath the grilling and bit his lip "Hey, Ty?"

Tyra turned to look over at him "Yes?"

The Doctor inhaled deeply, steeling himself for her reaction to his next words "I just wanted to ask you…"

It was then that Rose strode into the Tardis, a newspaper in her hand "According to the paper, they've elected a ghost as MP for Leeds." She looked around for the Doctor until Tyra pointed to the side "Now, don't tell me you're gonna sit back and do nothing."

The Doctor popped up from the grilling again, holding an odd-looking device in one hand with a rucksack-y thing on his back "Who're you gonna call?" he asked in a bad imitation of Scooby-Doo.

"Ghostbusters," Rose laughed.

"I ain't afraid of no ghosts," the Doctor mimicked once more before winking at both Rose and Tyra as he swaggered past.

Tyra smirked after him, shaking her head. The Doctor was a dork. There was no other way to describe him. A brilliant, stupid and oblivious dork but loveable, nonetheless.

Outside, Jackie was waiting for them, already watching the Doctor nervously. The Doctor had already put up the three metal cones linked by wires on the grass "When's the next shift?"

Jackie shifted "Quarter to," she said "But don't go causing trouble. What's that lot do?"

"Triangulates their point of origin," the Doctor explained.

Rose leaned forward "I don't suppose it's the Gelth?"

The Doctor looked up, shaking his head "Nah. They were just coming through one little rift. This lot are transposing themselves over the whole planet. Like tracing paper."

Jackie scoffed "You're always doing this. Reducing it to science. Why can't it be real? Just think of it, though. All the people we've lost. Our families coming back home. Don't you think it's beautiful?"

"I think it's horrific," the Doctor shot back "Tyra, tell her what you just told me. Rose, give us a hand."

Tyra shot him an annoyed look but walked over to Jackie who was glaring at the Doctor's back "Jackie. I know that he could have worded it better but… I think he's right."

"But why?" Jackie exclaimed "What would be so bad?"

"Think about it," Tyra sighed "If the dead were coming back it wouldn't only be the good ones. Think… serial killers, abusive people and more. Sure, you have love to have your family back but…"

Jackie looked at her "But you wouldn't want yours to come back?"

Tyra smiled grimly "Neither of my family is technically dead… My siblings are around somewhere. Mickey apparently met one of my brothers not too long after Christmas. My father is alive-ish and my mother is… It's complicated. Just know that there are a lot of people who aren't what they seem." She inhaled deeply "But what's worse is… Dying once is more than enough. Would you want them to come back and see what they left behind? I – I personally wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy."

"Maybe you're right," Jackie sighed, looking at the Tardis "She changed, you know?"

Tyra blinked "What?"

"Rose," Jackie clarified "She is becoming more like him every day."

"I think that is something you should tell her," Tyra pointed out.

Jackie looked at her, her eyebrow wandering up "But you're travelling with them. Can't you see it too?"

Tyra closed her eyes for a moment "Jackie, Rose and I don't really get along too great anymore. I might have been at fault for the way it started but… The way Rose has been acting since she found out about me is the biggest reason."

"What do you mean?" Jackie asked.

Tyra groaned, rubbing a hand down her face "You saw how she was at Christmas. That attitude only changed when she – When… You know, this is really something you should talk to her about. I didn't even tell the Doctor about this, so I shouldn't be telling you either."

"I'll talk to her," Jackie sighed "I think it's long overdue anyway. I just don't understand why she would leave all the time… Am I that bad of a mother?"

"What?" Tyra's eyes widened "No. Honestly, I would love to have a mother like you. Someone who gives a crap. You have to understand, though… What's out there is incredible. The Doctor is showing us so much and I don't think either Rose or I would give it up."

* * *

"What's the line doing?" the Doctor called over his shoulder.

"It's alright," Rose shouted back "It's holding."

"Are you alright?" the Doctor asked, looking up from his construction.

Tyra nodded "Stop asking me that. How long to go?"

"I'll always ask you how you are," the Doctor replied "And it's one more minute." She looked around, a grin blooming on his face "Here we go."

"The scanner's working," Rose called "It says delta one six."

The Doctor nodded to himself "Come on then, you beauty," he muttered. A ghost materialised exactly inside the field, writhing in comfort "Don't like that much, do you? Who are you?" he asked, walking around the ghost "Where are you coming from? Whoa." He flinched back as the ghost tried to break out of the field "That's more like it. Not so friendly now, are you?"

"Holy…" Tyra trailed off, staring at the raging figure in the field.

The Doctor stepped back, grabbing Tyra's hand "Come on." He tugged her to the Tardis, practically shoving her inside "I said so," he proclaimed, getting the attention of Rose. Tyra frowned, looking around for Jackie. Tyra found her sitting on the grating that was higher up "Those ghosts have been forced into existence from one specific point and I can track down the source. Allons-y." The Doctor froze, the Tardis already in motion "I like that. Allons-y. I should say Allons-y more often. Allons-y. Watch out, Tyra Mikaelson, Rose Tyler. Allons-y. And then, it would be really brilliant if I met someone called Alonso because then I could say, Allons-y, Alonso, every time. You're staring at me." He looked at Rose in confusion.

"My mum's still on board," Rose grinned sheepishly, pointing to the woman up on the grating.

"If we end up on Mars, I'm going to kill you," Jackie warned, seeing the Doctor's expression.

Tyra snorted, patting his shoulder "Two Tylers for the price of one." Her attention was drawn to the scanner when the shaking of the Tardis stopped.

The Doctor pouted lightly "Oh well, there goes the advantage of surprise. Still, cuts to the chase. Stay in here, look after Jackie."

"I'm not letting you go out there alone," Tyra told him, her eyes narrowed at the armed troops that were standing around the Tardis.

Rose huffed "I'm not looking after my mum."

"Well, you brought her," the Doctor pointed out before turning to Tyra "I don't want you to…"

Tyra cut him off "Well, tough. You can die. Me? Not so much. The chances that they know about me being a vampire are mediocre at best. But knowing the rest? Close to impossible."

"Fine," the Doctor sighed.

"Doctor, they've got guns," Rose spoke up worriedly.

The Doctor nodded "And I haven't. Well, I have Tyra but that doesn't count." She scoffed at him, causing the Doctor to grin "Which makes me the better person, don't you think?" They can shoot me dead but the moral high ground is mine."

* * *

The Doctor and Tyra stepped out of the Tardis with Tyra staying in front of the Doctor. She raised her eyebrow as a woman ran toward them in high heels "Oh," she exclaimed, her eyes lighting up "Oh, how marvellous. Oh, very good. Superb. Happy day." She started clapping, causing the soldiers to join in.

Tyra exchanged a puzzled glance with the Doctor who had lowered his arms from their raised position "Er, thanks," he shifted uncomfortably, tugging Tyra back a little "Nice to meet you. I'm the Doctor."

"Oh, I should say." The woman practically swooned "Hurray."

"You – You've heard of me, then?" the Doctor stuttered.

The woman stared at him with a deadpan expression "Well, of course, we have. And I have to say, if it wasn't for you, none of us would be here. The Doctor, a Companion and the Tardis." There was more applause but it was slightly more scattered now.

"Sorry," Tyra spoke up, drawing the attention to herself "Who are you supposed to be?"

"Oh, plenty of time for that," the woman dismissed "But according to the records, there's three of you. The Doctor and his Companions. That's a pattern, isn't it?"

The Doctor looked at her with narrowed eyes before his mask was up again "Yes. Sorry. Good point. She's just a bit shy, that's all." He reached behind him blindly, grabbing the first person he could "But here she is, Rose Tyler."

Tyra bit her lip to stop herself from bursting into laughter when it wasn't Rose but Jackie who was standing next to her now.

"Hmm," the Doctor caught himself "She's not the best I've ever had. Bit too blonde. Not too steady on her pins. A lot of that." Tyra laughed to herself as he continued to ramble on, ignoring Jackie's look that was getting progressively stormier "And just last week, she stared into the heart of the Time Vortex and ages fifty-seven years. But she'll do." Tyra lowered her head, her shoulders shaking in amusement.

Jackie turned to the Doctor with indignation written over her face "I'm forty."

The Doctor patted her shoulder "Deluded. Bless. I'll have to trade her in. Do you need anyone? She's very good at tea. Well, I say very good, I mean not bad. Well, I say not bad."

"Better than you in any case," Tyra shot at him.

"Anyway," the Doctor clapped, speaking over her louder than strictly necessary "Lead on. Allons-y, But not too fast. Her ankle's going."

Jackie hit him in the arm "I'll show you where my ankle's going," she hissed, turning to glare at Tyra who still had the gall to look amused "Don't you start."

Tyra held up her hands in surrender "I didn't say anything."

"Don't think I didn't see you laughing," Jackie pointed at her threateningly.

"Sorry," Tyra grinned, turning back to look forward.

The woman looked over her shoulder when they reached a bit warehouse area "It was only a matter of time until you found us and at last, you've made it. I'd like to welcome you, Doctor. Welcome to Torchwood." She gestured around to the massive area with tons of crates, jeeps and trucks running through. On the other side of the room was a flying saucer type spaceship being stripped apart.

"Hey, wasn't that estate called Torchwood?" Tyra asked "Where you met Queen Victoria and Nik?"

The Doctor blinked "Ah, I tried to forget about that one…"

"I bet you did," Tyra laughed "She didn't seem to like you very much."

"Something I'm sure you didn't have a problem with, Lady Mikaelson," the woman shot back.

Tyra's smile fell from her face as she stared at her "What are you trying to say?" she questioned warily.

"Queen Victoria had a lot of good things to say about you… and your brother. What with being an old friend of the family and all that." The woman smirked knowingly "In case you're thinking about trying anything… Don't. We have stakes on standby and the guards are trained."

Tyra scoffed out a laugh "I would love to see you try. They won't get close to me."

The Doctor pulled her back and into his chest "Don't. Just don't, Tyra."

"Yes, don't, Tyra," the woman repeated with a malicious glint in her eyes. She had them both exactly where she wanted them.

Tyra shook her head "You should be more careful about who you threaten. I'm not scared of what you can do."

The woman frowned in confusion. Most vampires had at least shown some sort of reaction to the threat of being staked. She narrowed her eyes, wondering what game the girl was playing. Ah, she would just have to keep a close eye on her "So, Doctor. What do you make of this?"

"That's – That's a Jathar Sunglider," the Doctor gaped.

"Came down to Earth off the Shetland Islands ten years ago," she explained.

The Doctor tilted his head, studying the glider intently "What, did it crash?"

"No, we shot it down," the woman smirked "It violated our airspace. Then we stripped it bare. The weapon that destroyed the Sycorax on Christmas Day? That was us. Now, if you'd come with me. The Torchwood Institute has a motto. If it's alien, it's ours. Anything that comes from the sky, we strip it down and we use it for the good of the British Empire."

Jackie's head shot around "For the good of what?"

"The British Empire," the woman repeated with a fake smile.

"There isn't a British Empire," Jackie pointed out.

The woman crossed her arms smugly "Not yet. Ah, excuse me. Now, if you wouldn't mind." A soldier handed her a very big gun "Do you recognise it, Doctor?"

The Doctor glanced at it "That's a particle gun."

"Good, isn't it?" the woman bragged "Took us eight years to get it to work."

"It's the twenty-first century. You can't have particle guns," the Doctor exclaimed.

The woman sighed "We must defend our borders against the alien. Thank you, Sebastian, isn't it?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Sebastian nodded.

"Thank you, Sebastian. I think it's very important to know everyone by name," she rambled "Torchwood is a very modern organisation. People skills. That's what it's all about these days. I'm a people person."

The Doctor hummed "Have you got anyone called Alonso?"

"No," the woman frowned "I don't think so. Is that important?"

The Doctor sighed in disappointment "No, I suppose not. What was your name?"

"Yvonne," she replied "Yvonne Hartman." The Doctor picked up a black plastic step-stool thing with a handle on top. He studied it intently before handing it over to Tyra. She took it with a slightly puzzled frown "Ah, yes. Now, we're rather fond of these. The Magnaclamp. Found in a spaceship buried at the base of Mount Snowdon. Attach this to an object and it cancels the mass. I could use it to lift two tonnes of weight with a single hand. That's an imperial ton, by the way. Torchwood refuses to go metric."

"Then you and America have something in common," Tyra snarked.

Jackie reached out to touch the clamp "I could do with that to carry the shopping."

Yvonne snatched the device from Tyra "All these devices are for Torchwood's benefit, not the general public's."

"So, what about these ghosts?" the Doctor asked quietly before Jackie could say anything else.

"Ah, yes," Yvonne nodded "The ghosts… They're what you might call a side effect."

Tyra looked at her weirdly "Of what?"

"All in good time," she dismissed "Doctor, there is an itinerary, trust me."

The Tardis was driven past them on the back of a truck "Oi. Where are you taking that?" Jackie demanded.

"If it's alien, it's ours," Yvonne quoted herself.

"You'll never get inside," the Doctor pointed out, shrugging with a pleased look on his face.

Yvonne rolled her eyes and turned away from them "Hmm. Et cetera."

Tyra saw Rose peek out of the Tardis, the Doctor giving her a small nod from the corner of her eye "All those times I've been on Earth, I've never heard of you," the Doctor remarked as he followed Yvonne down another corridor.

"But of course not," she exclaimed "You're the enemy. You're actually named in the Torchwood Foundation Charter of 1879 as an enemy of the Crown."

Tyra coughed "I told you. It really seemed like she didn't like you at all."

"Her Majesty creature the Torchwood Institute with the express intention of keeping Britain great and fighting the alien horde," Yvonne explained.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow "But if I'm the enemy… Does that mean that I'm a prisoner?"

"Oh, yes," Yvonne nodded, looking pleased that he figured it out "And not just you. But we'll make you perfectly comfortable. And there is so much you can teach us. There is also a lot we still need to figure out about your kind." She pointed to Tyra before holding her ID against a scanner.

Tyra let out a sharp laugh "You really think that you can hold us? And that I would tell you anything? If I were you, I'd forget that idea. I'm willing to pretend you never said that we were prisoners. This one time."

"Oh, but we can hold you," Yvonne nodded "We know how to kill you, so I would be careful if I were you."

Tyra spread her arms "Go on, then. Try if you're feeling lucky."

The Doctor closed his eyes "Ty, please. Don't give them the satisfaction."

"I'm not standing by to get threatened, Doctor," Tyra snapped "Not if I can do something about this."

"I know," he sighed "I'm not asking you to take it. I'm asking you to at least show a hint of self-preservation."

Tyra rolled her eyes "But then they would think that I'm scared of their little stakes." She narrowed her eyes on Yvonne, sending her a sharp, fanged smile "If I'm going down, I might as well take you with me." She flashed forward, grabbing the woman by the neck. If she had really wanted to, she could have killed her right then and there but she didn't. Instead, she glared at Yvonne "I could kill you easily. Even before you can make a move. Think about that." She was about to let go when she heard a gunshot and a wooden bullet entered her heart. Tyra choked, pressing a hand to her chest as she felt veins crawling up her face.

Jackie let out a horrified scream, being held by the Doctor "You shot her," she screamed "You just went and shot her." She whirled around to face the Doctor "Do something."

The Doctor just shook his head "Don't worry about it. She'll be fine," he shrugged "Well, she'll be pissed but other than that, she'll be fine."

"You don't seem to know as much about vampires as you think, Doctor," Yvonne proclaimed, sounding very proud of herself "A stake – or in this case, a wooden bullet – to the heart kills them."

"Hmm," the Doctor hummed, gritting his teeth against the irritation. This Torchwood is starting to get onto his nerves quickly "I know that. I wish you good luck in any case." He looked around the room for the first time and blinked at the huge sphere at the other end "What's that, then?"

Yvonne shook herself out of her surprise and nodded "Ah, yes. You can start with this. What do you make of it?"

"You must be the Doctor," an Indian man spoke up, having watched the incident quietly until then "Rajesh Singh. It's an honour, sir." He held out his hand for the Time Lord but lowered it sheepishly when the Doctor ignored him in favour of staring at the sphere.

Jackie sent it a fearful look from her place by Tyra on the floor "What is that thing?" she whispered.

"We got no idea," Yvonne shrugged.

"But… what's wrong with it?" Jackie questioned.

Rajesh smiled "What makes you think there's something wrong with it?"

The Doctor darted forward and up some small steps that led to the platform right underneath the sphere, studying it more closely.

Yvonne sighed "Well, the sphere has that effect on everyone. Makes you wanna run and hide. Like it's forbidden."

"We tried analysing it using every device imaginable," Rajesh started as the Doctor put on a pair of 3D glasses "But, according to our instruments, the sphere doesn't exist. It weighs nothing. It doesn't age. No heat, no radiation and it has no atomic mass."

"But I can see it," Jackie argued.

"Son of a…" Tyra groaned, jerking at the pain in her back. She rolled her eyes and continued to mutter "Why do I always forget how much that hurts?"

"Probably because you enjoy shocking people more," the Doctor pointed out, walking over to her, offering his hand. He pulled Tyra up and turned her around "I think you might need help getting that bullet out."

Tyra grimaced, shooting a glare at a shell-shocked Yvonne Hartman "Oh, joy. Can you…?"

The Doctor hummed and plopped his 3D glasses on her neck "This is going to hurt."

"Just do it, will you?"

"What are you…" Jackie cut herself off when the Doctor started digging around in Tyra's back without any care "What the hell?"

Rajesh stepped up to Yvonne, staring at the scene with the same incredulous expression she had "How is that possible?" he asked quietly "I thought stakes were guaranteed to kill vampires."

"They are," Yvonne mumbled.

"They kill normal vampires," Tyra snapped, letting out a hiss when the Doctor started digging deeper "Really? How long does it take to find a stupid bullet?"

The Doctor huffed "Stop complaining. I almost have it."

"Hurry it up," Tyra grimaced.

"Maybe next time don't get shot," the Doctor advised, pulling his hand back while letting the bullet drop to the ground.

Tyra shrugged "How else should I make a point?"

"Oh, I don't know… Maybe the same way us normal people do?" the Doctor asked sarcastically.

"You? Normal?" Tyra was about to say something else when she caught sight of the sphere "What is that?"

The Doctor tapped the specs she was still wearing and nodded to the sphere "What do you see?"

Tyra looked up "There's some sort of… stuff?" She turned to look at the Doctor for the first time since he had given her the specs "Wait… It's on you too?"

"Well, Doctor?" Yvonne prompted, making a mental note to demand answers about the whole 'not-dying' thing later.

"This is a Void ship," the Doctor pointed out.

Yvonne tilted her head "And what's that?"

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair "It's impossible for starters. I always thought it was just a theory but it's a vessel designed to exist outside time and space, travelling through the Void." He turned away from the sphere, sitting down at the bottom of the stairs with his back to the Void ship.

"And what's the Void?" Rajesh asked.

"The space between dimensions," he explained "There's all sorts of realities around us, different dimensions, billions of parallel universes all stacked up against each other. The Void is the space in between, containing absolutely nothing. Imagine that. Nothing. No light, no dark, no up, no down, no life, no time. Without end. My people called it the Void. The Eternals call it the Howling but… some people call it Hell."

Rajesh gulped nervously "But someone built the sphere. What for? Why go there?"

"To explore?" the Doctor shrugged "To escape? You could sit inside that thing and eternity would pass you by. The Big Bang, end of the Universe, start of the next, wouldn't even touch the sides. You exist outside of creation."

Yvonne's face lit up "You see, we were right. There's something inside it."

"Oh, yes," the Doctor sighed.

"So how do we get in there?" Rajesh questioned.

The Doctor's face darkened as he took back his 3D specs, tugging Tyra away from the thing. Tyra seemed slightly lost but went along with him "We don't," he snapped. Whatever was in there, he didn't want it out "We send that thing back into Hell. How did it get here in the first place?"

"Well, that's how it all started," Yvonne pointed out "The sphere came through into this world and the ghosts followed in its wake."

The Doctor nodded, walking out only to stop right next to Yvonne, leaning impossibly closer "I know that Tyra didn't really die but if you ever – ever shoot her again… I will destroy Torchwood before the day is over, do you understand that?" With that said, he turned back towards the door, pulling Tyra along "Show me."

"No, Doctor," Yvonne called after processing the words he had just spoken, causing the Doctor to whirl around, walking in the other direction.

Tyra looked up at him and sighed "You didn't have to do that," she murmured.

The Doctor sent her a curious look "Do what?"

"Don't play dumb," she rolled her eyes "You know I can't die. I don't need you to protect me." When his face started changing, she added "But I appreciate it. Thank you."

"You're welcome."

The guards herded them into an elevator, pressing the button for the very top. Yvonne turned to Tyra "How did you survive?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Tyra mocked, leaning into the Doctor a little.

"Tell me," the woman demanded, her eyes narrowing "Or I will make sure that you get pumped full of bullets for as long as it takes."

Tyra pretended to be scared "Ooh, I'm terrified. I have met scarier things than you and your wooden bullets." She rolled her eyes but decided to give the woman something "Did you ever think that there had to be an origin of vampires, hm? They had to have come from somewhere, right? Original vampires. What do you think they are?"

"None of our test subjects could answer the question about the origin of vampirism," Yvonne breathed "What do you know?"

"I know a lot," Tyra shrugged "None of which I will be telling you."

"Original vampires," Yvonne mused, snapping her fingers "Make a note of that in the file. That will have to be investigated later."

* * *

Yvonne led them into a large white room, pointing them over to the far wall "The sphere came through here," she explained as the Doctor reached out to touch the wall, feeling along it "A hole in the world. Not active at the moment but when we fire particle engines at that exact spot, the breech opens up."

"How did you even find it?" the Doctor asked.

Yvonne turned around, surveying the room "Well, we were getting warning signs for years. A radar black spot. So, we built this place, Torchwood Tower. The breach was six hundred feet above sea level. It was the only way to reach it."

The Doctor pulled on his 3D specs again "You built a skyscraper just to reach a spatial disturbance? How much money have you got?"

"Enough," Yvonne smirked, walking away.

"Hold on a minute," Jackie exclaimed from the window behind Tyra "We're in Canary Wharf. Must be. This building, it's Canary Wharf."

Tyra furrowed her eyebrow "Is that the building that looks like a huge pencil or am I confusing that with the… No, wait. That one has another name…"

The Doctor shot her an amused look "A huge pencil?" he mocked her.

"Well, excuse me for not spending too much time in London. I never liked the city that much," she muttered, her hands raised in surrender "That, and my siblings have an annoying habit of either being in England or in the US. You can see why I normally stay away."

"You must hate travelling with me then," the Doctor snorted "We end up in London at least once a week."

Tyra shrugged "London before the 90s is bearable. But I prefer the English countryside."

"If you're done," Yvonne spoke up "Canary Wharf is the public name for it. But to those in the know, it's Torchwood."

"So, you find the breech, probe it, the sphere comes through," the Doctor started, pacing up and down "Six hundred feet above London, bam. It leaves a hold in the fabric of reality. And that hole, you think – Oh, shall we leave it alone? Shall we back off? Shall we play it safe? Nah, you think, let's make it bigger."

Yvonne huffed in annoyance "It's a massive source of energy," the woman pointed out "If we can harness that power, we need never depend on the Middle East again. Britain will become truly independent. Look, you can see for yourself. Next Ghost Shift is in two minutes." With that, she walked out of her office.

"Cancel it," the Doctor demanded.

Yvonne let out an incredulous laugh "I don't think so."

"I'm warning you," he stated dangerously "Cancel it."

Yvonne shook her head "Oh, exactly as the legends would have it. The Doctor, lording it over us. Assuming alien authority over the Rights of Man."

"Are you stupid?" Tyra asked "If this was harmless, he most likely wouldn't have said anything in the first place."

The Doctor shook his head at her, telling her to stay silent with a quick look. He didn't want her to get shot again. Seeing it once today was already more than enough. He pulled out his sonic "Let me show you. Sphere comes through." He pointed the screwdriver at her glass wall, causing it to crack "But when it made the hole, it cracked the world around it. The entire surface of this dimension splintered. And that's how the ghosts get through. That's how they get everywhere. They're bleeding through the fault lines. Walking from their world, across the Void and into yours, with the Human race hoping and wishing and helping them along. But too many ghosts and…" He tapped the glass, causing it to shatter completely.

Yvonne swallowed, putting her game face on "Well, in that case, we'll have to be more careful. Positions. Ghost Shift in one minute."

"Miss Hartman," the Doctor started seriously "I'm asking you, please don't do it."

"We have done this a thousand times," she waved off his concerns.

The Doctor took a deep breath "Then stop at a thousand."

"We're in control of the ghosts," Yvonne shook her head dismissively "The levers can open the breach but equally they can close it."

"Okay," the Doctor shrugged, going into the woman's office to grab a chair for himself.

Yvonne stopped and turned to look at him, flabbergasted "Sorry?"

The Doctor waved his hand, pulling Tyra to sit half on his lap, half on the edge of the chair. It was a bit uncomfortable but he stopped her from moving around too much with a hand around her waist "Never mind. As you were."

"What, is that it?"

"No, fair enough," the Doctor smiled sweetly "Said my bit. Don't mind me. Any chance for a cup of tea?"

A dark-skinned woman from one of the desks spoke up "Ghost Shift in twenty seconds."

Yvonne looked at the Doctor, an uneasy smile on her face. Now that he wasn't arguing anymore, it was obvious that she wasn't sure how to handle him anymore "You can't stop us, Doctor."

"No, absolutely not." He leaned his head back to look at Jackie "Pull up a chair, Rose. Come and watch the fireworks." Jackie smirked at Yvonne, coming to stand behind the chair the Doctor and Tyra were perched on, her hand resting on Tyra's shoulder.

The same woman from before spoke up "Ghost Shift in ten seconds. Nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two…"

Yvonne broke the staring match she had been having with the Doctor and whirled around "Stop the shift. I said stop."

"Thank you," the Doctor inclined his head.

"I suppose it makes sense to get as much intelligence as possible. But the programme will recommence, as soon as you've explained everything," Yvonne tried, struggling to compose herself.

The Doctor got up after shifting Tyra to the side "I'm glad to be of help."

"And someone clean up this glass," Yvonne called out "They did warn me, Doctor. They said you liked to make a mess." She stepped over the glass and into her office through the newly made door "So, these ghosts, whatever they are, did they build the sphere?"

The Doctor shrugged, pushing the chair back into the office, sitting back down across from Yvonne "Must have. Aimed it at the dimension like a cannonball."

"_Yvonne?_" Rajesh called out over the computer "_I think you should see this. We've got a visitor. We don't know who she is but funnily enough, she arrived at the same time as the Doctor._"

"She one of yours?" Yvonne asked, turning the laptop to face the Doctor.

The Doctor looked at Rose on the screen, no emotion on his face "Never seen her before in my life."

"Good," Hartman sneered "Then we can have her shot."

"Oh, alright," the Doctor groaned "It was worth a try. That's – That's Rose Tyler."

Yvonne raised her eyebrows, looking from the back of the screen to Jackie and back "If that's Rose Tyler, who's she?"

"I'm her mother," Jackie huffed, crossing her arms. She was still mad about what that woman had done to Tyra earlier. Of course, the girl seemed alright but it couldn't have been pleasant to die. She had become somewhat of a surrogate child for her after Christmas just as the Doctor had become a part of her family as well. For Tyra, she tried to be a bit of a role model. Not too much since she knew that the vampire could take care of herself but she thought that maybe she could help by showing the girl that not every parental figure had to be bad.

Yvonne raised her eyebrow "Oh, you travel with her mother?"

"Please," the Doctor pleaded, forgetting the situation he was in at the moment "When Torchwood comes to write my complete history, don't tell people I travelled through time and space with her mother."

Tyra snorted "Really? That's what you're focussing on at the moment?"

"Wouldn't you?" he asked.

Tyra shook her head "Nope. I like Jackie."

"Aw, thank you, sweetheart," Jackie cooed, trying to hold back the laughter at the Doctor's disgruntled look. She shot him a glare even if there was amusement in her eyes. She didn't care much for his grumpy behaviour because she understood that both Tyra and he were uncomfortable in some situations with her and she couldn't begrudge that. She wasn't always easy to get along with "Charming," she muttered teasingly.

The Doctor shrugged apologetically "I've got a reputation to uphold."

Yvonne's head turned towards the rising commotion outside of her office and frowned "Excuse me? Everyone? I thought I said stop the ghost shift." She looked at everyone there "Who started the programme? I ordered you to stop. Who's doing that?" The levers kept moving into an upright position "Right, step away from the monitors, everyone." Three of her employees ignored her completely, focussed on the monitors in front of them "Gareth, Addy, stop what you're doing, right now. Matt, step away from your desk. That's an order. Stop the levers. Andrew!" A scientist grabbed hold of one of the levers, trying to pull it back down without any luck "Stop the levers."

"What's she doing?" the Doctor frowned, looking over Addy's shoulder.

Yvonne stepped up next to him "Addy, step away from the desk. Listen to me. Step away from the desk."  
"She can't hear you," the Doctor muttered, studying the earpieces. They reminded him of something "They're overriding the system. We're going into Ghost Shift." He continued to look at the earpiece before his eyes widened "It's the earpiece. It's controlling them. I've seen this before. Sorry. I'm so sorry." He zapped Addy's earpiece, causing her and the two men to scream before the three of them collapsed.

Hartman gasped in shock "They're dead."

"You killed them," Jackie breathed hysterically. She was standing behind the Doctor, staring at the scene in horror.

"Oh, someone else did that long before I got here," the Doctor replied, running a hand through his hair.

Jackie shook her head "But you killed them."

The Doctor rolled his eyes at her "Jackie, I haven't got time for this."

"What are those earpieces?" Yvonne asked, reaching out for Addy's Comms device.

"Don't," the Doctor snapped.

Tyra leaned forward, her eyes widening "Doctor, aren't those…?"

The Doctor nodded grimly "Yeah. This is Cyber-technology."

"Oh great," she groaned.

"But they're standard Comms devices. How does it control them?" she questioned in confusion. This didn't make any sense to her. How could the Comms have been controlling them? Nothing had ever indicated that this was possible "And what do you mean Cyber-technology?"

The Doctor looked over at her, his expression hard again "Trust me, leave them alone."

"But what are they?" Yvonne demanded, pulling at the earpiece. She almost dropped it in disgust when a rope of grey matter came out with it "Urgh. Oh, God… It goes inside their brains."

"What about the Ghost Shift?" the Doctor asked.

Yvonne looked at the monitor and shook her head "Ninety percent there and still running. Can't you stop it?"

"They're still controlling it," the Doctor pointed out "They've hi-jacked the system."

"Who's they?"

The Doctor glanced over his shoulder at Tyra, seeing her talking with Jackie quietly. The woman was looking less hysterical the longer they were talking "It might be a remote transmitter," he explained "But it's got to be close by. I can trace it. Jackie, stay here." He stopped before he ran out and walked over to Tyra "I want you to stay here. Try and see what's going to happen here. You know more about Cybermen than anyone else here. Remember what I told you."

"Are we absolutely sure that it's Cybermen?"

"No," he shook his head "But don't pretend you didn't read those books that I have in the Tardis. You know more than you think. Please, just stay here and try to protect the Humans."

Tyra closed her eyes "Fine. But if you're getting yourself killed, I'll bring you back and kill you again, understand?"

"Understood," he nodded and ran off.

"Tyra, what's going on?" Jackie asked, still a little scared.

Tyra looked around the room "I have no idea. But I'm sure that it's nothing good." She picked up the earpiece that was lying on the desk "Nothing good at all."

* * *

Tyra's head snapped up when she heard footsteps coming down the corridor. Very heavy footsteps that she had heard only once before. In the parallel world… "Get away from the door," she called out the others in the room before pulling Jackie back "Stay behind me."

"Get away from the machines," the Doctor shouted as he was escorted into the room by a group of Cybermen "Do what they say. Don't fight them." Just as he said that the Cybermen activated their arm guns, shooting the scientists who were trying to hold back the levers.

Jackie grabbed onto Tyra's arm tightly "What are they?" she whispered.

"We are the Cybermen," one of them spoke up, turning to the levers "The Ghost Shift will be increased to one hundred percent."

The levers moved into an upright position "_Online,_" the computer intoned.

"Here come the ghosts," the Doctor muttered grimly, staring at the wall.

Tyra walked up next to him and tilted her head "How is this possible? They're the Cybermen from the parallel universe, right? They shouldn't have been able to come through."

The Doctor shook his head "I… I'm not sure."

Jackie looked from the Cybermen to the bright light coming from the wall "But these Cybermen, what've they got to do with the ghosts?"

"Do you never listen?" the Doctor demanded "A footprint doesn't look like a boot."

The Cyberleader turned quickly "Achieving full transfer."

"They're Cybermen," the Doctor breathed, staring at the wall in shock "All the ghosts are Cybermen. Millions of them, right across the world." By now, the ghosts had solidified, forming up into military positions all over the world.

Yvonne trembled "They're invading the whole planet."

"I don't think this would count as an invasion anymore," Tyra pointed out grimly "No one will be able to fight this many. This is a clear victory for them."

All of a sudden, the computer started repeating a phrase that made all of them stare at the screen "_Sphere activated. Sphere activated. Sphere activated. Sphere activated._"

"But I don't understand," the Doctor spoke up after watching the chaos unfold for a few moments "The Cybermen don't have the technology to build a Void ship. That's way beyond you. How did you create that sphere?"

The Cybermen looked over at him "The sphere is not ours."

"What?"

"The sphere broke down the barriers between world," the Cyberman explained "We only followed. Its origin is unknown."

The Doctor's eyes were locked onto the monitor again, blinking at the picture of the sphere "Then what's inside it?"

"Rose is down there," Jackie whispered urgently.

Tyra turned to her "Calm down, Jackie. Rose will be alright, okay? She can help herself." She didn't add the 'most of the time' since that definitely wouldn't be the right moment to throw shade. Especially since Rose hadn't been too horrible to her recently. Then again, that was only due to Damon's compulsion on her, so Tyra really couldn't give her any credit for that.

**Omake**

Klaus was in London, once again looking for Tyra. He was starting to get annoyed by London. How come he always tracked his sister here but kept missing her by minutes? It had started during World War Two and continued until now. The longer he tried, the more hope he lost. Did she even want to be found? She was bound to know that he was still looking for her, so if she was running, did that mean that she didn't want to be found? Klaus was unsure and he really hated that feeling. He disliked not knowing where his siblings were and as such had kept a rather close eye on Elijah – not that he knew – after he left. The only member of his family that he lost track off was Tyra. She was good at avoiding detection and he was more than a little sure that she had help in that aspect. Every time he got close, she was gone. That couldn't be a coincidence.

His head snapped up when the screaming started "What the…?" His eyes widened when the so-called ghosts started taking form, getting more and more solid until the vague shapes were replaced by figures completely encased in metal "Well, this is different."

Klaus kept to the shadows, unsure of what exactly those things were for. They had arranged themselves in military displays every couple of streets, seemingly waiting for orders.


	15. Doomsday

_Then… _

"_But I don't understand," the Doctor spoke up after watching the chaos unfold for a few moments "The Cybermen don't have the technology to build a Void ship. That's way beyond you. How did you create that sphere?"_

_The Cybermen looked over at him "The sphere is not ours."_

"_What?"_

"_The sphere broke down the barriers between world," the Cyberman explained "We only followed. Its origin is unknown."_

_The Doctor's eyes were locked onto the monitor again, blinking at the picture of the sphere "Then what's inside it?"_

"_Rose is down there," Jackie whispered urgently._

_Tyra turned to her "Calm down, Jackie. Rose will be alright, okay? She can help herself." She didn't add the 'most of the time' since that definitely wouldn't be the right moment to throw shade. Especially since Rose hadn't been too horrible to her recently. Then again, that was only due to Damon's compulsion on her, so Tyra really couldn't give her any credit for that._

Now…

"No," Jackie glared, causing Tyra to back off "What's down there? She was in that room with the sphere. What's happened to Rose?"

The Doctor turned to her, grabbing her shoulders gently "I don't know. I'll find her. I brought all of you here, I'll get you out, you and your daughter and Tyra. Jackie, look at me. Look at me. I promise you. I give you my word."

A Cybermen approached them, heading straight for Yvonne "You will talk to your central world authority and order global surrender," the Cyberleader ordered.

Yvonne scoffed "Oh, do some research. We haven't got a central world authority."

"You have now," the Cyberman pointed out "I will speak on all global wavelengths. This broadcast is for Humankind." Out of the corner of her eye, Tyra saw the Doctor putting on his 3D glasses again "Cybermen now occupy every landmass on this planet but you need not fear. Cybermen will remove fear. Cybermen will remove sex and class and colour and creed. You will become identical. You will become like us." There was mass panic outside as Cybermen were getting attacked left and right, killing people as London burned outside the tower. The Cyberleader looked at his prisoners "I ordered surrender."

The Doctor snorted "They're not taking instructions. Don't you understand? You're on every street, you're in their homes, you've got their children. Of course, they're going to fight."

Suddenly, the Cyberleader straightened up "Scans detect unknown technology active within sphere chamber." The Doctor looked up in concern, reaching out for Tyra unconsciously.

"Cybermen will investigate," another Cyberman commanded.

"Units ten six five and ten six six will investigate sphere chamber," the Cyberleader pointed out.

Two of the Cybermen around nodded "We obey." They left, walking out of the room.

The Cyberleader turned to the desk in front of him "Units will open visual link." A Cyberman's view came up on Yvonne's laptop "Visual contact established."

"Well, damn," Tyra breathed as a Dalek hovered into view "How is that possible, Doctor?"

"I –" he broke off, shaking his head. He swallowed a few times, trying to dislodge the lump in his throat "I don't know."

The Dalek on the screen stopped "_Identify yourselves._"

"_You will identify first,_" the Cyberman retorted.

"_State your identity,_" the Dalek practically shouted.

The Cybermen stayed strong "_You will identify first._"

"_Identify._"

"… _illogical,_" the Cyberman huffed "_You will modify._"

"_Daleks do not take orders,_" the Dalek hissed.

The Cyberman on screen seemed almost smug "_You have identified as Daleks._"

"_Outline resembles the inferior species known as Cybermen,_" another Dalek's voice echoed through the speakers.

"Rose said about the Daleks," Jackie whispered, her voice shaking in fear "She was terrified of them. What have they done to her, Doctor? Is she dead?"

The Doctor whirled around to face Tyra, holding out his hand to her "Phone."

"What?" Tyra blinked, turning away from the screen.

"Give me your phone," the Doctor repeated. Tyra shrugged, handing it over, making sure it was unlocked for him.

"_We followed in the wake of your sphere,_" the Cyberman explained on the screen.

The Doctor dialled Rose's number, holding the phone to his ear "She answered," he exclaimed "She's alive… Why haven't they killed her?"

"Well, don't complain," Jackie rolled her eyes.

"Maybe they need her from something?" Tyra spoke up carefully "I mean… She does know about Daleks and I doubt many people on this planet would… Right?"

"_We must protect the Genesis Ark,_" a Dalek on the other end of the line shouted.

The Doctor frowned "The Genesis Ark?"

"Do you know what that is?" Tyra asked, leaned closer to him.

He shook his head with a puzzled expression "I have no idea."

"_Our species are similar,_" the Cyberman on the screen remarked "_Though your design is inelegant._"

The Dalek moved its eyestalk "_Daleks have no concept of elegance._"

"_This is obvious,_" the Cyberman pointed out, causing Tyra to snort. No matter how dangerous this situation was… She sort of lived for those two bashing each other. Especially since neither of them actually had emotions "_But consider, our technologies are compatible._" The Doctor's face showed his apprehension at the thought alone. But Tyra could understand. She had only met either species once or twice but she knew that the universe was screwed if they teamed up "_Cybermen plus Daleks. Together we could upgrade the Universe._"

"_You propose an alliance?_" the Dalek asked.

The Cyberman inclined his head "_This is correct._"

"_Request denied,_" the Dalek shouted.

The Cybermen readied their weapons "_Hostile elements will be deleted._"

They shot at the Dalek who just seemed to be slightly amused by the display. Whether that was possible or not… It just stayed there, letting them shoot at the shield around its body "_Exterminate,_" the Dalek cried out, killing both Cybermen within a second.

The Cyberleader turned to his subordinates "Open visual link," he snapped before looking at the Daleks on the laptop screen "Daleks, be warned. You have declared war upon the Cybermen."

"_This is not war,_" a black Dalek pointed out "_This is pest control._"

"We have five million Cybermen. How many are you?"

The black Dalek didn't even pause "_Four_."

The Cyberleader angled his body towards the screen more "You would destroy the Cybermen with four Daleks?"

"_We would destroy the Cybermen with one Dalek,_" the Dalek scoffed "_You are superior in only one respect._"

"What's that?" the Cyberleader humoured him.

"_You are better at dying._" The black Dalek swung its eyestalk around "_Raise communications barrier._"

The Doctor cursed under his breath, looking down at the phone "Lost her."

The Cyberleader whirled around "Quarantine the sphere chamber. Start emergency upgrading. Begin with these personnel." He gestured to the people in the room.

"No, you can't do this," Yvonne shrieked from next to Tyra, causing her to flinch away from the high-pitched sounds.

The Cyberman behind the Doctor spoke up "These two. Their increased adrenaline suggests that they have vital Dalek information."

"Stop them," Jackie cried out "I don't want to go. You promised me. You gave me your word." Tyra looked from the Cybermen to Jackie and to the Doctor, trying to think of what to do. Maybe she could try to get Jackie away from them… But how?

"I demand you leave that woman alone," the Doctor hissed "I won't help you if you hurt her. Jackie, don't fight. I'll think of something."

Tyra tugged at his sleeve "I can get her somewhere safe?"

"Tyra, no," the Doctor shook his head, keeping an eye on the Cybermen who – while looking at them – didn't seem to care about their conversation at all "I don't want you to put yourself in danger more than you already have."

"But I can help her," Tyra argued quietly "I'm pretty sure I'm faster than them."

The Doctor glared at the Cyberleader who was standing in front of them before he transferred his glare to Tyra "No. What do you think happens if you get caught and they upgrade you, huh? I doubt you can come back from that, Tyra. You'll stay with me and that's it. Jackie is smart."

"She barely knows what Cybermen are," Tyra argued, crossing her arms "Do you really think she's going to survive this? What are you going to tell Rose?"

"No," he snapped, grabbing Tyra's shoulders harshly "I'm not losing you, alright? Please, Tyra."

Tyra stared into his eyes, breathing harshly "I'm not happy about this."

"I know," he sighed "I'm not either. But I want you safe."

"And I don't want Jackie to get hurt," Tyra sighed "I just…"

The Doctor placed his hands on her shoulders "I'm sure Jackie will be just fine. She is as resourceful as Rose."

Tyra let out an incredulous laugh "Rose has been in situations like this though, Jackie hasn't." She looked at him for a moment before she took a step back, shaking her head "I'm sorry," she whispered before running off. The last thing she heard from the lever room was the Doctor shouting her name.

In the corridor, she leaned against the wall, closing her eyes for a moment "I'm sorry, Doctor," she mumbled "I can't let her die." She hurried down the stairs, trying to find out where the Cybermen were taking the people before quickly ducking into the shadows when a group of people was lead past her.

Tyra followed them carefully, making sure to make as little noise as she could and staying in the shadows. She was about to run towards the screaming to look for Jackie when the woman in question collided with her. Tyra pressed her against the wall with her hand over Jackie's mouth "Shh. Quiet!"

"Tyra," Jackie gasped as soon as Tyra had lowered her hand "I…"

Tyra held up her hand to silence Jackie, listening to the Cybermen in the other corridor "We have to get out of here. Quickly. Come on!" She grabbed Jackie's wrist, pulling her through the corridors as quickly as they could go.

"What are you doing here?" Jackie asked "Why did you come?"

"Because I didn't want you to die," Tyra mumbled, glancing around the corner. She could hear the heavy footsteps above, below and everywhere in between and it was really making her paranoid "I know that you can take care of yourself but this is a whole other story than to manage to live your life on your own. No offence."

Jackie smiled wryly "None taken… Well, some taken."

"Sorry," Tyra shrugged sheepishly before stiffening, raising her finger to her lips. Jackie nodded, pressing herself against the wall. She trusted the girl to get her out of this alive "Stay here. Whatever you hear, don't come out, okay?"

"What are you going to do?" Jackie hissed quietly but Tyra was already gone.

"You are not compatible," the Cyberman said as Tyra sped forward, barely getting between the Cyberman and the young man it was trying to delete.

She grimaced when the electricity course through her. Tyra's knees gave out on her as she struggled to stay on her knees "Go," she hissed at the shell-shocked man "Corner."

"What…?"

"No time," Tyra spat, glaring up at the Cybermen as she was fighting to get back to her feet "Go. Now!"

As soon as the man was out of sight, Tyra let out a grunt, straightening up against the steel grip of the Cybermen "Now you just pissed me off…" She grabbed the arm, dislodging it from her shoulder before reaching up and with as much strength as she could muster, she twisted the head clear off.

The moment, the Cyberman hit the ground, Tyra stumbled against the nearest wall, pressing a hand to her throbbing chest.

"Tyra," Jackie cried out, rushing over to her. Her hands fluttered over the girl worriedly.

"How did you do that?" the man asked, staring at the decapitated Cyberman with wide eyes "What are you?"

Tyra straightened up and shook her head "That's not important right now. We have to get away from here." She went to walk off when she stopped "Sorry, what's your name?"

"Jones," he murmured "Ianto Jones."

"Hm," Tyra tilted her head "Welsh? Okay, stupid question. Ignore that. I'm Tyra. And this is Jackie."

Ianto studied them curiously "You're with the Doctor."

"That would be us," she nodded "Now, ready to get away?"

He managed a small, unsteady smile "More than that."

Tyra tilted her head, listening to the noises in the corridors around them "Ianto, is there a staircase nearby?"

"Er… Yeah, this way," he nodded, gesturing down the corridor to their right.

"Show me."

* * *

They had just reached the staircase when Jackie's phone rang "Help us," she breathed into the phone.

"_Jackie,_" the Doctor gasped in relief "_You're alive. Listen…_"

"They tried to download me but I ran away and then I found Tyra," she babbled.

Tyra could imagine the Doctor rolling his eyes "_Shush. Listen, tell me. Where are you?_"

"I don't know," Jackie shook her head, looking around "Staircase."

"_Yeah? Which one?_" the Doctor asked urgently "_Is there any sort of sign? Anything to identify it?_"

Tyra turned to Ianto who was leaning against a wall by now, his face pale and his hands were shaking as shock seemed to set it "Ianto," she called out softly "I need you to tell me where we are. Which staircase, which floor? Do you know that?"

He swallowed a couple of times before he nodded "N3. North corner, third staircase," he answered.

"Jackie," Tyra called over her shoulder "Did you hear that? N3. Third staircase, north corner."

"_Got it,_" the Doctor nodded to himself "_Just keep low. We're coming._"

Jackie let out a panicked noise "No, don't leave us."

"_I've got to go,_" the Doctor replied apologetically "_You have Tyra to take care of you. I'm sorry._" Just before he hung up, he seemed to think of something else "_Tyra, I know that you can here me. You and I are going to have a little talk later, do you understand?_"

Tyra grimaced at that and a feeling of worry welled up inside of her. She hadn't meant to ignore the Doctor but… She just felt as if she had to help Jackie "Hey, how are you holding up?" she murmured to Ianto, touching his shoulder gently.

Ianto shuddered lightly "Lisa. I was… I was trying to find her." He straightened up "I have to find her."

"Who's she, then?" Jackie asked, sounding a little calmer than she had on the phone a minute ago.

"My girlfriend," Ianto explained "She was… They took her. You have to help me find her, please. You killed one of those things."

Tyra bit her lip "We have to go and find the Doctor. I might have been able to kill one but I'm not sure how many I could take. Electrocution isn't a pleasant feeling, you know… I'm sorry, Ianto. I can't help you."

He lowered his head and nodded "I'll have to go and find her, then. Thank you for saving me," he said, making to walk off.

"This is suicide," Tyra shook her head "There are Cybermen everywhere. You can't go looking for her."

"I can't just leave her," Ianto huffed "What if she's still alive?"

"Then you won't find her because she's most likely hiding," Tyra explained. She startled when heavy footsteps came closer, grabbing a hold of both Ianto and Jackie "We have to get out of here. They're coming."

Jackie let out a small scream when the door to the staircase burst open behind them "No, no, no…"

"Run," Tyra called out, shoving them up the stairs in front of her.

* * *

"Why was Yvonne so interested in you?" Ianto asked as soon as the three of them had managed to get away. They had gotten out of the staircase and into an empty hallway close to where the sphere chamber was.

Tyra frowned, looking over at him in confusion "What do you mean?"

"Just something Lisa said," he shrugged, glancing around the empty corridors "Apparently, there was something that they were trying to find out about you. The Doctor is sort of an open book. Torchwood knows a lot about him but you…"

Tyra ran a hand through her hair "Well, there's a good reason for that."

Jackie looked over at her "How much do you think they know really?"

"I don't know," Tyra shrugged "They know about stakes and that it kills vampires but apart from that, she didn't really let anything slip."

Ianto let out a small gasp "Vampire? You're a vampire and Yvonne didn't kill you?"

Tyra shot him a small grin "Not for the lack of trying on her part. She actually had me shot."

"Then how…?"

"I'm not a normal vampire," Tyra shrugged "Hartman didn't know that though. Not too many of my kind actually know about their history. It's not a secret but not common knowledge either."

Ianto tilted his head "I… Don't understand…"

"Never mind," Tyra shook her head.

They walked in silence for a while before Tyra once again pushed them against the wall, gesturing for them to be quiet. A whole squad of Cybermen marched toward them, cornering the three easily "You will be upgraded."

Jackie grabbed Tyra's arm tightly "No, but you can't. Please!"

"It's alright," Tyra soothed, hearing the others around the corner. She just hoped they would hurry it up.

"_Oh, no, she didn't_," Pete muttered. He shot the Cybermen from behind to save his not-wife.

Jackie gaped "Pete?"

Tyra waved a little "Hi, Pete."

"Hello, Jacks, Tyra" Pete smiled.

"I said there were ghosts," Jackie exclaimed, turning on Tyra "You told me there weren't really ghosts. But that's not fair. Why him?"

Tyra exchanged an amused look with Pete "He's not a ghost, Jackie. He's…"

"But you're dead," she interrupted "You died twenty years ago, Pete."

The Doctor stepped forward "It's Pete from a different universe. There are parallel worlds, Jackie. Every single decision we make creates a parallel existence, a different dimension where…"

"Oh, you can shut up," Jackie waved him off, leaving the Doctor with his mouth open in surprise. She looked up at Pete "Oh, you look old."

Pete smiled awkwardly "You don't."

"How can you be standing there?" Jackie questioned.

Pete shrugged "I just got lucky. Lived my life. You were left on your own. You didn't marry again or…"

"There was never anyone," she shook her head "Twenty years, though. Look at me. I never left that flat. Did nothing with myself."

"You brought her up," Pete replied, gesturing to Rose who was standing next to Mickey "Rose Tyler. That's not bad."

Jackie bit her lip "Yeah."

Pete shifted, trying to think of something to say. It seemed to be getting less awkward to talk to this version of his wife "In my world, it worked. All those daft little plans of mine, they worked. Made me rich."

"I don't care about that," Jackie shook her head "How rich?"

The Doctor and Tyra snorted as a grin stole its way across Pete's face "Very."

Jackie nodded "I don't care about that. How very?"

"The thing is though, Jacks, you're not my wife," Pete pointed out, sounding like he was trying to convince himself more than her "I'm sorry but you're not. I mean, we both… You know, it's just sort of… Oh, come here." He handed his gun to Tyra just in time for Jackie to run into his arms.

* * *

"What were you thinking?" the Doctor demanded, his eyes narrowed as he mustered Tyra.

Tyra shifted a little "Honestly? I don't think I was."

The Doctor strode forward, tilting her chin up "Tell me what happened."

"Nothing I can't handle," she shrugged "Doctor, I'm fine and I'm sorry that I didn't listen but…"

"You had to help," he finished for her "I don't like it. I really, really don't but I guess I understand."

Tyra inclined her head "I know how to stay out of trouble even if it doesn't…" She trailed off as her gaze found the people who were still standing behind the Doctor. A strangled noise left her throat "Henrik?"

Henrik smiled and waved a little "Hey, Tyra. Nice to see you again."

She looked at him for a moment before turning to the Doctor "What's going on…?"

"Apparently, Pete and the others need help," the Doctor explained with a shrug "The others just tagged along."

Arms wrapped around Tyra from the side "I missed you," Mickey whispered into her hair.

Tyra wrapped her arms around his neck, raising to her tiptoes "Missed you too, Mickey."

"Hey, who is that?" the Doctor asked, nodding to Ianto who had watched the whole scene from afar.

Jackie looked over to see Tyra still buried in a hug that had been joined by Ricky and Jake "Ianto Jones. Tyra saved him from a Cyberman earlier and he tagged along."

The Doctor nodded and studied the young man carefully. His eyes were darting around the room and his skin was pale enough to make him look like a ghost "How are you coping?"

"They're all dead," Ianto mumbled "How am I supposed to be coping?"

"Fair enough." The Doctor cleared his throat, breaking the hugging feast all around him "I hate to break the moment… but we kind of have a situation to deal with."

The group continued through the corridor until they reached the big doors of the warehouse from earlier. The Doctor peaked into the warehouse, then crawled over to a crate to grab a pair of Magnaclamps before dodging laser fire to get back.

Rose was on the edge of her toes, biting her lip almost violently "Come on, please."

As soon as he was safe, the Doctor looked back in with his 3D glasses. Dalek Sec was in the middle of the warehouse "Override roof mechanism," he shouted. The warehouse's roof shutters started to slide back "Elevate."

"What are they doing?" Rose whispered, craning her neck "Why do they need to get outside?"

"Time Lord science," the Doctor replied "What Time Lord science? What is it?" They all watched the Daleks gliding up and out into Canary Wharf along with the Ark "We've got to see what it's doing. We've got to go back up. Come on. All of you, top floor."

Jackie protested immediately "That's forty-five floors up. Believe me, I've done them all."

Ianto looked around the warehouse, seeing all the bodies littering around "I'll stay here. Maybe someone survived. I have to know."

"Be careful," Tyra told him "And stay out of sight, alright?"

"Thank you," Ianto nodded.

* * *

In Yvonne's office, the Doctor got to the window in time to see the Ark shooting out Daleks in all directions as it spun around. The Doctor cursed loudly "Time Lord science. It's bigger on the inside."

"Did the Time Lords up those Daleks in there? What for?" Mickey asked, watching the sky in trepidation.

"It's a prison ship," the Doctor pointed out grimly.

Rose moved forward "How many Daleks?"

"Millions." The Daleks spread out over London as the Cybermen started shooting the sky, leaving the Humans alone in favour of the new threat.

Pete shook his head, backing away "I'm sorry but you've had it. This world's going to crash and burn. There's nothing we can do. We're going home." He took a yellow medallion from one of the commandoes and held it out for Jackie "Jacks, take this. You're coming with us."

"But they're destroying the city," Jackie argued.

Pete shook his head with a sigh "I'd forgotten you could argue. It's not just London, it's the whole world. But there's another world just waiting for you, Jacks. And it's safe as long as the Doctor closes the breach. Doctor?"

The Doctor turned around "Oh, I'm ready. I've got the equipment right here. Thank you, Torchwood." He used one of the computer terminals "Slam it down and close off both universes."

"But we can't just leave," Rose exclaimed "What about the Daleks? And the Cybermen?"

"They're part of the problem," the Doctor explained "And that makes them the solution. Oh, yes!" He looked at them with the 3D glasses on "Well? Isn't anyone going to ask what is it with the glasses? Anyone but Tyra that is."

Rose raised her eyebrow at the Doctor "What is it with the glasses?"

"I can see," the Doctor exclaimed smugly "That's what. Because we've got two separate worlds but in between the two separate worlds, we've got the Void. That's where the Daleks were hiding And the Cybermen travelled through the Void to get here. And you lot, one world to another, via the Void. Oh, I like that. Via the Void. Look." He handed the spectacles to Rose "I've been through it. Do you see?"

"_Reboot in three minutes,_" the computer announced.

Rose grimaced at the sight "What is it?"

"Void stuff," the Doctor shrugged "Look at the others. And the only one who hasn't been through the Void, your mother. First time she's looked normal all in her life."

"Oi," Jackie huffed.

The Doctor grinned at her "But the Daleks lived inside the Void. They're bristling with it. Cybermen, all of them. I just opened the Void in reverse. The Void stuff gets sucked back inside."

"Pulling them all in," Rose finished.

"Sorry, what's the Void?" Mickey asked raising his hand.

The Doctor ran his hand through his hair "The dead space. Some people call it Hell."

"So, you're sending the Daleks and Cybermen to Hell," Mickey nodded before hitting Jake's shoulder "Man, I told you he was good."

Tyra hummed "But if that's the case… How do you plan on keeping all of us from getting sucked in as well?"

"That's why you've got to go," the Doctor said.

"_Reboot in two minutes,_" the computer intoned.

The Doctor didn't look at them when he started talking again "Back to Pete's World. Hey, we should call it that. Pete's World. I'm opening the Void but only on this side. You'll be safe on that side."

"And then you close it, for good?" Pete asked.

The breach itself is soaked in Void stuff," the Doctor nodded "In the end, it'll close itself. And that's it. Kaput."

Rose crossed her arms "But you stay on this side?"

"But you'll get pulled in," Mickey pointed out worriedly.

"That's why we got these," the Doctor pointed out, holding up the Magnaclamps "I'll just have to hold on tight. I've been doing it all my life."

Rose stared at him "I'm supposed to go? And Tyra?"

"Yeah," the Doctor nodded.

Tyra ripped away from Henrik, Kol and Jake, stalking toward him "I'm not leaving," she hissed, trying very hard not to let her emotions take over too much "You of all people know how it is to be alone. There are no vampires there… I'd be alone."

"Your family is alive," he reminded her, pointing behind her "Your twin is alive."

"But they're not my family," Tyra shouted, tears in her eyes before taking a couple of calming breaths "They're not my family. They're Human, Henrik is Human. My family is out there somewhere and if I leave now… I'm never going to see them again." She jabbed her finger toward the window aggressively.

Tyra glanced at Henrik sadly when she realised that this was the last time she would ever see him outside of her dreams… And even if he wasn't actually her brother, the thought hurt. She would love to just stay with them but they wouldn't allow her to change them and she couldn't watch them die. She wouldn't watch them die.

Henrik caught her gaze and waved her over as Rose started to argue with the Doctor "I know that I'm not actually your brother," he started "But I have an idea… Would you like to have some photos?"

"You would…" Tyra trailed off, swallowing against the lump in her throat "Why would you do that?"

"Because I can see that you're still hurt," Henrik pointed out "And it's the least I can do. After all, you saved us from the Cybermen."

Tyra threw herself at him, a few tears escaping "Thank you. Thank you… I –"

Henrik shook his head, ruffling her hair "You don't have to thank me. It's nothing." He handed Kol the phone and made sure that she had plenty of pictures with Tyra and some with only him in them. Halfway through, Jake and Rickey joined in, making Tyra laugh as they started teasing Henrik.

The last one was her favourite picture. She had gotten distracted by Mickey when Henrik threw her over his shoulder "Henrik," she exclaimed, getting the attention of the rest of the room. The Doctor couldn't help but smile at them for a moment before he turned back to the task at hand, leaving them to their moment "Thanks," Tyra whispered when she was put down. She leaned up, pressing a kiss to his cheek as she accepted her phone back "Really. This – This means a lot."

"I added some from my own phone," Kol whispered as he pulled her closer "I think you might enjoy them."

"Thank you," she smiled.

The building started to shake and Pete stepped forward "We haven't got time to argue. The plan works… We're going. I can understand Tyra staying because she's right, Doctor. You can't just throw her into a world where she is alone…"

"I'm not leaving here if Tyra is staying," Rose hissed, staring at Pete defiantly.

Jackie stepped between her daughter and the parallel version of her husband "I'm not going without her."

"Oh, my God," Pete groaned "We're going."

"I've had twenty years without you, so button it," Jackie cried out "I'm not leaving her."

Rose shook her head "You've got to."

Jackie rolled her eyes "Well, that's tough."

"Mum."

The computer cut off the argument "_Reboot in one minute._"

"I've had a life with you for nineteen years," Rose pointed out, looking at her mother intently "But then I met the Doctor and all the things I've seen him do for us, for all of us… For the whole stupid planet and every planet out there. He does it alone, mum." She glanced at Tyra "Well, almost. But not anymore because now he got me. And Tyra."

Tyra blinked and went to open her mouth when the Doctor snuck up behind Rose. He shook his head, putting one of the medallions around Rose's neck at the same time as Pete pressed the button and the whole group disappeared. Tyra stared at the spot Henrik had vanished in before shaking her head "You know that she won't stay gone, right?" she asked, looking at the Doctor.

"I'm hoping that Pete can contain her until I can close the Void," the Doctor shook his head sadly "Come on. Let's get this done."

Suddenly, Rose appeared in the middle of the room, blinking in confusion "I think this is the one switch…"

"Told you so," Tyra coughed, walking around the Doctor to fetch both of the Magnaclamps for later.

The Doctor turned to Rose, grabbing her shoulders roughly "Once the breach collapses, that's it. You will never be able to see her again. Your own mother."

"I made a choice a long time ago," Rose swallowed "And I'm never going to leave you. So, what can I do to help?"

"_Systems rebooted_," the computer announced "_Open access._"

"Ty, get the clamps ready… Put them on the walls here and here." He pointed to two places on the walls "Rose, those coordinates over there, set them all at six. And hurry up."

Rose went to the terminal, her head snapping up almost immediately "We've got Cybermen on the way up."

"How many floors down?" the Doctor asked, jogging over to her.

"Just one."

The computer once again spoke up "_Levers operational._"

"That's more like it," Rose cheered as Tyra fastened the second clamp at the bit of wall just behind the lever on Rose's side "Bit of a smile. The old team."

Tyra looked over at the Doctor with a small, warning smirk "If you call us the Scooby Gang, I'm obligated to hit you."

"I was going to mention the three Musketeers," the Doctor shrugged, grabbing the right lever "When it starts, just hold on tight. Shouldn't be too bad for us but he Daleks and the Cybermen are steeped in Void stuff. Are you ready?"

Tyra nodded as Rose pointed to the window "So are they."

The Doctor stared at the Daleks who were visible just outside the window "Let's do it."

"Rose, hold onto the clamp. I got the lever," Tyra told her, quickly getting the lever into an upright position.

"_Online,_" the computer intoned. A bright light came out of the breach as Tyra held onto the clamp with Rose, a strong wind rushing past us, sucking the first Daleks through the windows and into it.

The Doctor looked into the light, his eyes squinting a little "The breach is open. Into the Void. Ha." There was a steady stream of Cybermen and Daleks all being sucked through the one broken window and into the Void until the lever on the girls' side moved a little.

"_Offline,_" the computer announced as the suction started to decrease.

Rose and Tyra exchanged a look before she nodded reluctantly, tightening her grip on the clamp. Tyra slowly let go and carefully got herself over to the lever. She pulled at her hand a little, barely getting the lever back into its upright position before the suction started pulling at her.

"_Online and locked._"

"Tyra, hold on. Both of you, hold on," the Doctor shouted. The suction built up as Tyra tightened her grip on the lever as she was being pulled towards the Void horizontally.

They had almost done it, Tyra's grip remaining strong when a Dalek knocked Rose against the wall, causing her grip on the clamp to loosen. Tyra tried to reach out to grab her but when her own hand slipped, she had to hold on tighter.

Pete popped in just in time to catch Rose, teleporting them away a second later.

As soon as they were gone, the wind died down and the Void started to close itself "_Systems closed._"

"I'm sorry," Tyra gasped, falling to the ground with a small grunt "I tried. I'm so sorry."

The Doctor was staring at the wall for a few moments before walking over to help Tyra to her feet "It's not your fault. That Dalek hit her. It's fine."

"Still," she mumbled, leaning against the Doctor in comfort.

* * *

Back in the Tardis, Tyra gave the Doctor a long hug before excusing herself to take a long shower and sleep a little. She felt filthy and the fact that she had been wearing a bloody shirt for a couple of hours didn't help the matter. Dried blood had always been a bit disgusting.

As soon as she had finished her shower, her phone started ringing "Hello?" she sighed, rubbing a hand over her forehead. The whole day had been shitty and she was so glad that it was over now.

"_Tyra_," Damon's voice snapped her from her thoughts.

"Damon," Tyra frowned "Why are you calling? Are you alright?"

There was a snort on the other end of the line "_Shouldn't I be asking you that? I saw those aliens._"

"What makes you think that I was involved?" she asked, throwing herself onto her bed.

"_Because I know the Doctor. He would be in the middle of a mess like that and normally, where he goes, you go,_" Damon pointed out.

Tyra snorted "Well, yes. I am alright. We lost Rose, though."

"_What do you mean 'lost'?_" Damon questioned "_Oh, and how did you like the little present I left you?_"

Tyra shook her head "She's trapped in a parallel universe with her family. As for your gift… Thank you, Damon. It really did make the past few weeks easier. Listen, I've got to go now. I need a drink but I'll tell you about it some other time."

Damon laughed lightly "_That's alright. I'm glad that you're fine. Tell the Doctor I said hi._"

"I will. Thanks for the call, Damon." Tyra slowly wandered back to the console room with the unopened blood bag she had grabbed "Are you alright?" she murmured, wrapping her arms around the Doctor's waist from behind after setting down the bag.

The Doctor stared at the console for a moment before he nodded slowly "I think so. Or I will be."

"I'm glad that you allowed me to stay, by the way," she sighed, releasing him to take a drink from the bag.

"I'm sorry about that, Ty," the Doctor mumbled, scratching the back of his head "I really should have known better. Being the only one of your kind is…"

"Don't," Tyra shook her head "You don't have to say it. And you're forgiven."

The Doctor took a deep breath, steeling his nerves "Tyra? I…" He froze when a flash of white caught his attention. Oh, come on… Not again "What?"

Tyra blinked at the Doctor in confusion "What what?" She followed his gaze and snorted at the woman standing there.

"What?" the Doctor repeated.

The red-haired woman crossed her arms angrily "Who are you?"

The Doctor looked from the woman in the wedding dress to Tyra who was still holding the blood bag "But…"

"Where am I?"

"What?" the Doctor demanded, completely flabbergasted still.

The woman glared "What the hell is this place?"

Tyra snorted when the Doctor once again repeated "What?"

**I have written up to the point where I decided on the Rewrite already, so these chapters will be on a two/three-day posting schedule.**


	16. Runaway Bride

_Then… _

"_Are you alright?" she murmured, wrapping her arms around the Doctor's waist from behind after setting down the bag._

_The Doctor stared at the console for a moment before he nodded slowly "I think so. Or I will be."_

"_I'm glad that you allowed me to stay, by the way," she sighed, releasing him to take a drink from the bag._

"_I'm sorry about that, Ty," the Doctor mumbled, scratching the back of his head "I really should have known better. Being the only one of your kind is…"_

"_Don't," Tyra shook her head "You don't have to say it. And you're forgiven."_

_The Doctor took a deep breath, steeling his nerves "Tyra? I…" He froze when a flash of white caught his attention. Oh, come on… Not again "What?"_

_Tyra blinked at the Doctor in confusion "What what?" She followed his gaze and snorted at the woman standing there._

"_What?" the Doctor repeated._

_The red-haired woman crossed her arms angrily "Who are you?"_

_The Doctor looked from the woman in the wedding dress to Tyra who was still holding the blood bag "But…"_

"_Where am I?"_

"_What?" the Doctor demanded, completely flabbergasted still._

_The woman glared "What the hell is this place?"_

_Tyra snorted when the Doctor once again repeated "What?"_

Now…

"You can't do that," the Doctor shook his head "I wasn't… We're in flight. That is – that is physically impossible. How did…?"

"Tell me where I am," the woman shouted, glaring at the Doctor "I demand you tell me right now. Where am I?"

The Doctor looked to Tyra helplessly but she just grinned, taking a sip from the bag in her hand. He huffed at her betrayal and turned back to the woman "Inside the Tardis."

"The what?" the woman demanded.

"The Tardis," the Doctor repeated, sounding more and more annoyed at the woman in the wedding dress.

The woman raised her eyebrow, sounding just as done with the Doctor as he seemed with her. Tyra merely sat down on the jump seat, watching the confrontation in amusement "The what?"

"The Tardis."

"The what?"

The Doctor groaned "It's called the Tardis."

"That's not even a proper word," the woman pointed out "You're just saying things."

"How did you get in here?" the Doctor questioned.

The woman stared at him, her eyes narrowed dangerously "Well, obviously you kidnapped me. Who was it? Who's paying you? Is it Nerys? Oh, my God, she's finally got me back. This has got Nerys written all over it."

"Sorry, who's Nerys?" Tyra asked in confusion, leaning against the console next to the Doctor "And what did you do to her that she has to get you back for it? That sounds like a story I would be interested in hearing."

"Your best friend," the woman jabbed her finger at them before she caught sight of the bag that Tyra was holding "What is that? Are you drinking blood? What kind of sick freak does that?"

"Hold on," the Doctor cut in, resisting the urge to defend Tyra "Wait a minute. What are you dressed like that for?"

"I'm going ten pin bowling," she sneered.

Tyra hit the Doctor over the back of the head lightly "Wedding dress, Doc. She's getting married."

"I was halfway up the aisle," the woman shouted again, her finger digging into the Doctor's chest. He shifted away, fiddling with the controls as the woman followed him, still ranting "I've been waiting all my life for this. I was just seconds away and then you two, I don't know, you drugged me or something. You and that freak of yours."

The Doctor's eyes narrowed dangerously "I didn't do anything. And I would appreciate it if you didn't call her a freak."

The woman stomped around the console, following the Doctor as he checked on what had happened "I'm having the police on you," she huffed "Me and my husband… As soon as he is my husband. We're going to sue the living backside off you." Her gaze caught the door and she started running toward it.

Tyra exchanged a look with the Doctor, stepping back a little as he surged forward "No, wait a minute. Wait a minute. Don't." He whirled around to Tyra "Why didn't you stop her?"

"Sorry," she shrugged "I doubt that she would have liked me anywhere near her. I'm a freak after all." Tyra finished her response with a small shrug, not insulted at all. People had been calling her worse things before.

The woman opened the doors and looked at the gaseous nebula of the previous supernova they had been circling around. The Doctor joined her by the doors "You're in space. Outer space. This is my spaceship. It's called the Tardis."

"How am I breathing?" the woman gaped and for the first time since she had gotten over her shock, she wasn't yelling.

The Doctor leaned against the other half of the door behind the woman, drawing Tyra closer to his side "The Tardis is protecting us."

"Who are you?"

"I'm the Doctor," he introduced himself "And this is Tyra. You?"

"Donna," she mumbled, still staring outside.

The Doctor tilted his head "Human?"

"Yeah," Donna nodded before her head snapped up "Is that optional?"

The Doctor shrugged "Well, it is for me."

"You're… You're an alien?" she questioned before her eyes went to Tyra "Are you too?"

Tyra shook her head "He is. I'm not…"

"It's freezing with those doors open," Donna suddenly remarked, her arms wrapped around herself tightly.

The Doctor slammed the doors shut, whirling around to run back to the console, leaving Tyra standing with Donna "I don't understand that and I understand everything."

"Except for Human interaction," Tyra mumbled under her breath.

"This – This can't happen," he shook his head "There is no way a Human being can lock itself onto the Tardis and transport itself inside… It must be." He let out a triumphant noise as he grabbed an ophthalmoscope, getting very close to Donna, looking into her eyes "Impossible. Some sort of subatomic connection?"

Tyra stepped forward hesitatingly "Doctor… Maybe this isn't…"

"Something in the temporal field?" he cut her off, not even really noticing that Tyra had tried to talk. He was way too focused on the mystery in front of him.

"Doctor," Tyra sighed, seeing the anger rising in Donna's eyes.

He just blundered on "Maybe something pulling you into alignment with the chronon shell. Maybe something macro mining your DNA with the interior matrix. Maybe a genetic…" Donna reached out, delivering a loud slap to the Doctor's face. He turned back to her, a hand resting on his stinging cheek "What was that for?"

"You're so dense sometimes," Tyra snorted, patting his shoulder.

Donna glared at them in annoyance "Get me to the church."

"And she's shouting again," Tyra sighed, hopping onto one of the railings close to where the Doctor was standing.

The Doctor dropped his instruments and turned back to the console "Right," he huffed "Fine. I don't want you here anyway. Having Tyra here is more than enough trouble."

"Hey," Tyra exclaimed "At least I'm not the one wandering off all the freaking time."

"Are you two done?" Donna demanded, crossing her arms again.

The Doctor rolled his eyes "Where is this wedding?"

"Saint Mary's," Donna started as the Doctor got to work "Hayden Road, Chiswick, London, England, Earth, the Solar System." She froze when something caught her eye. Tyra looked over to see one of Rose's blouses slung over the railing across from Tyra "I knew it," she hissed, snatching it up "Acting all innocent. I'm not the first, am I? How many women have you abducted?" Donna turned on Tyra "Did he abduct you too?"

Tyra grabbed the piece of clothing from her hand as the Doctor swallowed a few times "That's our friend's," he said quietly. Tyra threw it onto the second level, making a mental note to put it away later. Maybe she would bring it to Rose's room later…

"Where is she then?" Donna demanded "Popped out for a spacewalk?"

Tyra placed her hand on the Doctor's standing as close to him as she could "She's gone," Tyra told the woman.

Donna raised an eyebrow "Gone where?"

"We lost her," the Doctor mumbled, wrapping an arm around Tyra's waist out of Donna's sight. Tyra let him, knowing that Rose had been important to him as a friend even if he might not have always liked her very much towards the end. It didn't matter whether she had been flirting with him or treating Tyra the way she had – not that he knew everything about that either but she had been his friend and that was what counted, in the end.

"Well, you can hurry up and lose me," Donna shouted furiously. She calmed down for a moment, studying the pair closely. Tyra shot her a warning glare with a small shake of her head, while the Doctor stared at the console sadly "How do you mean, lost?" she whispered.

The Doctor's head snapped up, distancing himself from Tyra "Right," he clapped, his mask back up "Chiswick."

* * *

Donna was already halfway out of the door as soon as the Tardis had landed "I said, Saint Mary's," Donna grumbled, seeing the building all-around "What sort of Martian are you? Where is this?"

"Something's wrong with her," the Doctor breathed, petting the Tardis' frame with a worried frown "The Tardis… It's like she's recalibrating." He ran back inside, while Tyra stayed where she was, watching Donna "She's digesting." The Doctor messed around with the console, trying to find out what happened "What is it? What have you eaten? What's wrong? Donna? You've really got to think. Is there anything that might've caught this?"

Donna walked around the Tardis, ignoring the Doctor completely. This was impossible. She glanced inside the box and then walked around it again as her eyes grew wider and wider as she did the normal circle around the Tardis.

"Anything you might have done," the Doctor continued calling over his shoulder from inside "Any sort of alien contacts? I can't let you go wandering off. What if you're dangerous. I mean, have you – have you seen lights in the sky or did you touch something like… something – something different, something strange?"

"Doctor?" Tyra called over to him as Donna started walking away after another freaked out glance into the Tardis "She's wandering off."

"Donna." The Doctor ran toward them, stopping in front of Donna to block her path.

Donna shook her head "Leave me alone. I just want to get married."

"Come back to the Tardis," the Doctor tried to convince her.

Donna snorted "No way. That box is too weird."

"I know it's weird," Tyra told her with a small grin "But if anyone can help, it's the Doctor."

"I really doubt that," Donna shot back, looking down at her watch "Ten past three. I'm going to miss it."

The Doctor looked at her, his eyes softening a little "You can phone them. Tell them where you are."

"How do I do that?" she raised her eyebrows.

"Haven't you got a mobile?" the Doctor questioned.

Donna closed her eyes and took a deep breath "I'm in my wedding dress," she hissed "It doesn't have pockets. Who has pockets? Have you ever seen a bride with pockets? When I went to my fitting at Chez Alison, the one thing I forgot to say is give me pockets."

"Ty?" the Doctor turned to Tyra with a sigh "Do you have your phone?"

Tyra patted the front pockets of her jeans and frowned "No. I think I left it in my room," she muttered "Damon called earlier – he says hi, by the way – and I forgot it after I changed."

"Great," he mumbled and turned back to Donna "This man you're marrying. What's his name?"

"Lance," Donna smiled dreamily.

The Doctor hummed "Good luck, Lance."

"Oi," Donna exclaimed "No stupid Martian is going to stop me from getting married. To hell with you. Both of you." With that said, she started running towards the street.

The Doctor stared after her in exasperation "I'm – I'm not… I'm not… I'm not from Mars."

"Is that really the most important thing right now?" Tyra asked, looking over her shoulder at him.

"No," he shook his head "But I'm not from Mars. That's just insulting."

Tyra patted his shoulder "Well, while you're here pouting, Donna is leaving. She is certainly… something."

"Oh, that she is," the Doctor agreed, tugging her after the bride.

They ran, catching up with her as she was trying to flag down a taxi "Taxi," she shouted as one drove past her "Why's his light on?"

The Doctor pointed, while Tyra stood back. She never really did the whole taxi experience, so she wasn't quite sure how it worked. Whenever she needed a ride, she either used public transport or – most commonly – compeller herself a ride "There's another one." He tried to run and catch it but was too slow.

"Taxi," Donna called again and waved frantically in an effort to catch the driver's attention but again they just drove on "Oi."

The Doctor glanced back at Donna in confusion "Do you have that effect on everyone? Why aren't they stopping?"

"They think I'm in fancy dress," Donna pointed out, looking at her dress with tears once again gathering in her eyes.

A taxi drove past, honking "Stay off the scotch, darling."

"They think I'm drunk?"

Two guys in a car yelled out of the window next "You're fooling no one, mate."

"They think I'm in drag," Donna huffed.

"Hold on, hold on." The Doctor shook his head, stepping out into the road. He raised his fingers to his lips and let out a piercing whistle. A taxi did a quick U-turn, coming over to pick them up. They climbed into the backseat with Tyra half pressed against the door and somehow almost managed to sit on the Doctor's lap. It was a slightly frustrating position to be in.

Donna leaned forward to talk to the driver "Saint Mary's in Chiswick, just off Hayden Road." She sniffled lightly "It's an emergency, I'm getting married. Just… Hurry up."

"You know it'll cost you, sweetheart," the driver called back "Double rated today."

"Oh, my God." Donna's eyes widened as she turned to the Doctor and Tyra "Have you got any money?" she whispered.

The Doctor shook his head "Er… No." He glanced down at Tyra before looking back to Donna sheepishly "Haven't you?"

"Pockets," Donna gestured to her dress violently.

Tyra rolled her eyes, leaning forward to compel the driver to take them to the church when the Doctor reached out to stop her "Don't," he murmured.

"Why?" Tyra frowned.

"Ty, it's not right. We can get money…"

Tyra shook her head "Look, we should get Donna to the church. Who cares how it's done?"

The Doctor looked hesitant for a moment before he sighed, letting go of her arm "You're a terrible influence."

"I know," Tyra grinned before getting the taxi driver's attention just as he was about to drop them off by the side of the road. She looked into his eyes "You will take us to the church as fast as possible and you will do it for free."

"What good is that supposed to do?" Donna huffed.

The taxi driver nodded "Sure thing, sweetheart."

Donna gaped when the man accelerated "How…? How did you do that?"

"Trade secret," Tyra winked at her.

"No, but you just…"

Tyra shrugged and leaned her head against the window, her eyes closed as she thought about Henrik and what happened not even a full day ago.

Donna looked down at her watch with a worried frown "Come on," she mumbled, mentally begging the taxi driver to hurry up. Almost as if hearing her thoughts, the car slowed down as traffic started to pick up. Why there were so many people out on Christmas Eve, Donna didn't know. The only thing she did know was that it was almost too late.

"Are we missing it?" the Doctor asked quietly, biting his lip.

"Yeah," Donna nodded, blinking back the tears.

The Doctor looked over at her "Well, you can book another date, right?" he pointed out.

Donna nodded with a small sniff "Course we can."

"You've still got the honeymoon."

"It's just another holiday now," Donna muttered.

"Yeah," the Doctor agreed, realising that he wasn't necessarily making things better at the moment "Yeah. Sorry."

Donna shook her head "It's not your fault."

Tyra looked over at her as the Doctor grinned "Oh? That's a change."

"Wish you had a time machine," Donna mumbled longingly "Then we could go back and get it right."

"Yeah," the Doctor nodded, sending Tyra a panicked look "But even if I did, I couldn't go back on someone's personal timeline… Apparently."

Donna looked at him for a moment before she sighed and looked back out of the window, watching the other cars crawl along the motorway.

* * *

It had taken them an hour to reach Saint Mary's and by the time they got there, the wedding was well and truly over. Donna let out a small sob, sinking down on a bench outside the church.

They were quiet for a moment before the Doctor pulled something out of his pocket "Oh," he remembered "You'd better put this on."

"Oh, do you have to rub it in?" Donna grumbled, looking at the simple golden band in the Doctor's hand.

He grimaced apologetically "This is a bio-damper. It can stop people from tracing the energy in you. Should keep you hidden." He slipped it onto her finger with a small grin "With this ring, I thee bio-damp."

"For better or for worse," Donna laughed tearily "So, does this happen often?"

"What?"

"This," she gestured to herself "Whatever the hell happened…"

The Doctor sighed and grabbed Tyra's hand, startling her out of her thoughts "Christmas seems to be a bit of a bad time for us… Last Christmas, there was this great big spaceship hovering over London." At Donna's confused look, he added "You didn't notice?"

"I… had a bit of a hangover," Donna admitted.

"We spent Christmas Day over at the Powell Estate," the Doctor continued, not caring whether Donna was interested or not "With this family… My friend. She had this family. Well, they were…" The Doctor let out a small snort "It was a pretty nice evening until we noticed that Tyra was missing."

"Missing?" Donna asked, glancing over to her.

Tyra shrugged "I don't do Christmas."

Donna nodded in understanding "Yeah, me neither." She bit her lip before looking at the girl "Look, I'm sorry… I shouldn't have called you a freak."

"I've been called worse," Tyra waved off "Don't worry about it."

Donna shook her head "Still. I shouldn't have said that."

"It's honestly alright," Tyra told her seriously.

"Can I ask… Why do you drink blood?" she questioned hesitatingly.

Tyra raised her eyebrow "What do you think is the reason?"

"Vampire," she whispered uncertainly "You said you were Human… That's the only thing that I could think of but that can't be right… Can it?"

"Why not?" Tyra asked, exchanging a glance with the Doctor.

Donna scoffed "Because they're just stories. They don't exist."

"There's more to the world, Donna," the Doctor said "How did you get inside the Tardis? I don't know… What's your job?"

Donna blinked a few times "I'm a secretary," she gave back, throwing me an uncomfortable look.

The Doctor grabbed his sonic, scanning her again "It's weird," he mused "I mean, you're not special, you're not powerful, you're not connected, you're not clever, you're not important."

"This friend of yours," Donna started, a glare once again on her face "Just before she left, did she punch you in the face?" She shoved his hand away from her "Stop bleeping me."

The Doctor did stop but continued his questioning "What kind of secretary?"

"I'm at HC Clements," Donna explained "It's where I met Lance. I was temping…" She looked lost in memories "I mean, it was all a bit posh really. I'd spent the last two years at a double-glazing firm. Well, I thought I'm never going to fit in here. And then he made me a coffee. I mean, that just doesn't happen. Nobody gets the secretaries a coffee." She sighed dreamily "And Lance… He's the head of HR. He didn't need to bother with me. But he was nice, he was funny. And it turned out he thought everyone else was really snotty too. So that's how it started, me and him. One cup of coffee. That was it."

The Doctor held out his arm for Tyra, waving her over to them "When was this?"

"Six months ago," Donna said.

"Bit quick to get married," the Time Lord blinked in surprise, wrapping his arm around Tyra's shoulders, resting his head on her head.

Donna shrugged "Well, he insisted. And he nagged and he nagged me." Tyra exchanged an amused look with the Doctor, knowing that it wasn't Lance who had been the one nagging "And he just wore me down. And then finally, I just gave in."

"What does HC Clements do?"

"Oh," Donna blinked out of her memories "Security systems. You know, entry codes, ID cards, that sort of thing. If you ask me, it's a posh name for locksmiths."

The Doctor frowned "Keys…"

"Anyway, enough of my CV," Donna sighed before getting up "Come on, it's time to face the consequences. Oh, this is going to be so shaming. You can do the explaining, Martian boy."

"Yeah," the Doctor shook his head "I'm not from Mars."

Donna ignored him, letting out another small sigh "I had this great big reception all planned. Everyone's going to be heartbroken."

* * *

Heartbroken wasn't the right word for what they walked in on a little while later. Everyone was dancing underneath a huge disco ball, having a great time. As soon as the first person caught sight of Donna, everything stopped.

"You had the reception without me?" Donna asked incredulously. She had frozen as soon as she entered, glaring at a woman to the side until she was noticed.

Lance stared at Donna in shock "Donna, what happened to you?"

"You had the reception without me…" Donna repeated.

There was an awkward pause until the Doctor leaned forward to introduce himself as cheerfully as he could "Hello. I'm the Doctor."

Donna rounded on them, her hands on her hips "They had the reception without me."

"Yeah," Tyra grimaced "You said that already."

"Well, it was all paid for… why not?" the blonde who had been dancing with the groom earlier snapped arrogantly.

Donna glared "Thank you, Nerys."

"Ooh," Tyra drawled quietly "You still haven't told me what you've done to her, Donna. Although… From what I can see I would probably have done something similar. Whatever it was that you did…"

The Doctor raised his eyebrow in surprise "You… Are you rambling?"

Tyra winced "Damn… And you say I'm a terrible influence," she muttered, hitting the Doctor's arm.

An older blonde approached angrily "Well, what were we supposed to do?" she demanded "What the hell happened? How did you do it? I mean, what's the trick because I'd love to know." That broke the dam as everyone started talking at once, demanding what happened.

"Where were you the whole time?" Lance questioned.

Donna's eyes darted around at everyone as she burst into tears dramatically. The room froze and Lance reached out, pulling her into his arms. From where her head was placed on her not-quite husband's shoulder, Donna winked at the Doctor and Tyra, continuing to fake sob.

The Doctor shook his head with a small smile and wandered over to the bar as the party continued. He looked over to a guy messing with his phone "Can I borrow your phone for a moment?" he asked loudly.

"You really should invest in your own," Tyra shook her head as the man handed it over. The Doctor entered the browser and quickly typed in HC Clements. The phone cycled through websites extremely fast when he started using his sonic on it until a window popped up "Oh… Great." HC Clements belonged to Torchwood. Somehow, neither of them were surprised that Torchwood had something to do with this. Even if they didn't exist anymore.

The Doctor looked over at Tyra "By the way, did you know that Damon compelled Rose?"

Tyra looked up in surprise "How do you know that?"

"So you did know?" the Doctor asked "And Rose told me about it."

"Huh… I'm gonna have to talk to Damon about covering his tracks," she mumbled to herself before her eyes widened "Did she tell you why Damon compelled her?"

The Doctor shook his head "No… Why?"

Tyra shook her head "No reason. Don't worry about it."

"Tyra." The Doctor crossed his arms.

She sighed "No, Doctor. We just lost Rose. I'm not going to tell you why Damon compelled her. Just know that he had a reason for it. A good one."

The Doctor studied her for a moment before he nodded reluctantly. After a few beats of silence in which he let his gaze wander over the crowd, he spoke again "Do you see what I see?"

Tyra frowned for a moment "What?" She followed his line of sight, seeing a guy with a video camera, recording the dancing people "Do you think he recorded it?"

"Let's find out," the Doctor shrugged, making his way through the crowd.

When he asked, the man nodded "I taped the whole thing. They've all had a look." He wound the tape back to the right time, still talking "They said 'sell it to You've Been Framed'. I said 'more like the News'. Here we are…" The cameraman played the tape, the camera zooming in on Donna's face as she disintegrated into golden energy that flew off through the roof of the church.

"Can't be," the Doctor shook his head sharply "Play it again?"

"Clever, mind," the man shrugged "Good trick, I'll give her that. I was clapping."

Tyra looked at the Doctor, seeing his expression "What is it?"

"That looks like Huon Particles," the Doctor explained.

The cameraman raised his eyebrow "What's that then?"

"That's impossible," the Doctor blinked "That's ancient… Huon energy doesn't exist anymore, not for billions of years. So old…" He closed his eyes, dread settling over his face "So old that it can't bee hidden by a bio-damper." With that said, the Doctor ran outside.

Tyra followed him and stopped short when she saw several Santa robots approaching "Oh, not them again," she groaned.

"Donna," the Doctor shouted, vaulting over a railing, running up to the woman "Donna, we have to get out of here."

"What? Why?" she blinked.

The Doctor shook his head "The bio-damper doesn't work. We've got to get everyone out."

"My God," Donna breathed, even if she didn't quite understand what was going on "It's all my family."

"Out the back door," the Doctor waved. He froze when he saw more robots our there "Maybe not, then."

Tyra grabbed his arm "There are more." She pointed out the French windows.

Donna shivered "We're trapped… What are they?"

The Doctor groaned out loud when he saw the remote one of them was holding "Christmas trees," he called out in alarm."

Donna blinked in confusion "What about them?"

"They kill," Tyra told her, rubbing at her chest when she remembered the last time. The three had really done a number on her.

"Get away from the trees," the Doctor called out, jumping over tables and chairs to herd the people back and away from the wall the trees were at.

"Don't touch the trees," Donna joined in, shooing her family away.

Tyra helped them push the people away and the Doctor rolled his eyes when no one listened to them "Get away from the Christmas trees. Everyone get away from them. Everyone stay away from the trees. Stay away from the trees."

"Oh, for God's sake," Donna's mother rolled her eyes "The man's an idiot. Why? What harm's a Christmas tree going to…" The plastic baubles were floating off the trees "Oh."

Tyra sighed "Well, at least it's not spinning this time."

"I don't think this is much better," the Doctor pointed out as the baubles started zooming at people, exploding as soon as they hit something. Everyone started panicking as one man was throwing into the air, landing squarely on the wedding cake. Donna had ducked underneath a table, holding onto Lance tightly "Oi. Santa!" the Doctor shouted out as all six of the robots lined up in front of the bar "Word of advice. If you're attacking a man with a sonic screwdriver, don't let him near the sound system." He jammed his screwdriver into the deck, causing Tyra to quickly raise her hands to her ears as the pain from the high-pitched tones made her hit the ground, curling into a ball while the robots were falling apart.

"It's alright, Stan," an older man murmured, patting another man's back "It's all over."

"Ty," the Doctor called out, falling to his knees next to her "Are you alright?"

She still had her hands clutched over her ears but now that the sound was gone, the pain was quickly receding "You asshole," she hissed, glaring at the Doctor."

He held up his hands "Sorry, but this was the only thing I could think of. Come on." The Doctor pulled her to her feet easily, leading her over to the broken-down robots "Look at that." He picked up the remote "Remote control for the decorations but there's a second remote control for the robots." His hand uncovered one of the heads, revealing a blinking plate in the place the brain was "They're not just scavengers anymore. I think someone's taken possession."

"Never mind that," Donna snapped "You're a doctor. People have been hurt."

"Nah, they want you alive," the Doctor shook his head "Look." He threw one of the baubles to her, slipping the remote into his pocket "They're not active now."

Donna stared down at the ornament "All I'm saying, you could help."

The Doctor jumped up "Got to think of the bigger picture. There's still a signal." He grabbed Tyra's hand again, tugging her outside with him, following the signal with the help of his sonic. Either it was Tyra's imagination or he had become a lot more touchy-feely the past day. The number of times he had taken her hand or thrown his arm around her was almost higher than in the past two years put together. Not that she minded… "There's something behind this, directing the Robo-forms," the Doctor explained as soon as Donna joined them.

"But why is it me?" Donna asked quietly "What have I done?"

"If we find the controller, we'll find that out," the Doctor pointed out, letting his screwdriver wander up until it was pointing at the sky "Ooh. It's up there. Something in the sky." He continued scanning but when the ambulances arrived a few moments later, he grumbled "I've lost the signal. Donna, we've got to get to your office. HC Clements. I think that's where it all started." The Doctor looked around until his eyes landed on Lance "Lance," he called out "It is Lance? Lance, can you give us a lift?"

Tyra rolled her eyes when he just ran off and looked to Donna's not-quite husband "Sorry about him," she offered "But if you could… That would be great."

Lance looked at Donna before he sighed "Alright. Where to?"

* * *

"To you, this might just be a locksmith but HC Clements was brought up twenty-three years ago by the Torchwood Institute," the Doctor spoke up as soon as they had reached Donna's desk.

"Who are they?" Donna asked.

"They were behind the battle of Canary Wharf," the Doctor pointed out. When Donna sent him a clueless look, he raised his eyebrow "Cybermen Invasion. Skies over London full of Daleks?"

Donna shook her head "Oh, I was in Spain."

Tyra snorted at the Doctor's look of exasperation "They had Cybermen in Spain."

"Scuba diving," Donna gave back with a shrug.

"The bigger picture, Donna," the Doctor sighed "You keep on missing it. Torchwood was destroyed but HC Clements stayed in business. I think someone else came in and took over the operation."

Donna tilted her head "But what do they want with me?"

"Somehow you've been dosed with Huon energy," the Doctor pointed. Tyra's head snapped up when Lance's heart skipped several beats. She had been listening for any irregularities since his heart had sped up earlier when they entered the building. This was going to be a nightmare. There was almost no chance that he wasn't involved… "And that's a problem because Huon energy hasn't existed since the Dark Times. The only place you'd find Huon particles now is a remnant in the heart of the Tardis. See? That's what happened. Say, that's the Tardis." He picked up a coffee mug "And that's you." A pencil "The particles inside you activated. The two sets of particles magnetised and what." He shook the mug and the pencil before dropping the pencil inside "You were pulled inside the Tardis."

Donna blinked at the display in front of her "I'm a pencil in a mug?"

The Doctor sent her a huge grin "Yes, you are. 4H. Sums you up." He whirled around to Lance "Lance? What was HC Clements working on? Anything top secret? Special operations? Do not enter?"

"I don't know," Lance lied through his teeth, his heart fluttering "I'm in charge of personnel. I wasn't project manager. Why am I even explaining myself? What the hell are we talking about?"

The Doctor finally got a computer screen to work, getting it to display the plans of the building "They make keys," he pointed out "That's the point. And look at this. We're on the third floor." He whirled around, jogging over to the elevator "Underneath receptions, there's a basement, yes? Then how come when you look in the lift, there's a button marked lower basement? There's a whole floor which doesn't exist on the official plans. So… What's down there?"

Lance shifted, crossing his arms "Are you telling me this building's got a secret floor?"

"No," the Doctor shook his head "I'm showing you this building's got a secret floor."

"It needs a key," Donna pointed out.

The Doctor smirked "I don't." He then used the screwdriver on the lower basement button "Right then. Thanks, you two. Tyra and I can handle this. See you later."

"No chance, Martian," Donna scoffed, getting into the elevator with us "You're the man who saved my life. I ain't letting you out of my sight."

The Doctor shrugged at her determination "Going down."

"Lance?"

Lance looked uncomfortable, his eyes darting all over "Maybe I should go to the police."

Donna crossed her arms "Inside." Lance quickly joined them before the doors closed.

"To honour and obey?" the Doctor joked.

Lance snorted and for the first time, he seemed to actually be genuine "Tell me about it, mate."

"Oi," Donna exclaimed as the elevator descended, stopping with a low ping. They stepped out into a long, dark and dank corridor that was very dimly lit with an eerie green light "Where are we? Well, what goes on down here?"

The Doctor grinned, waggling his eyebrows "Let's find out."

"Do you think Mister Clements knows about this place?" Donna questioned, walking forward.

The Doctor joined her "The mysterious HC Clements? I think he's part of it."

Tyra glanced at Lance and quickly wrapped her arm around his neck, her hand muffling his sound of protest. A minute later, he slumped in her arms as she let him fall to the ground with a thud. She had no doubt that he was the one who had given Donna the Huon particles and if he hadn't, he at the very least knew what was going on here. Tyra walked up to Donna and the Doctor while they were getting onto two Segways "What are you…?"

"Hold on," Donna spoke up, looking around "Where's Lance?"

Tyra shrugged "Said he wanted to stay behind." She eyes the Segway wearily "I'm not getting on that thing…"

"Alright," Donna shrugged, getting the Segway to move forward.

Tyra laughed as they started crawling along the corridor, walking along next to the Doctor, not even having to pick up her speed. The Doctor leaned down to her "What did you do?"

"Knocked him out," Tyra explained "He knows something, Doc. Lance has something to do with this, I'm sure about it. He has been lying ever since we entered the building."

"Yeah," the Doctor mumbled.

* * *

The three stopped at a bulkhead door labelled Torchwood in big, bold letter. Authorised personnel only. The Doctor hopped from his Segway and turned the wheel to open ed the door "Donna, Tyra, wait here. Just need to get my bearings." He waved his fingers in Donna's face "Don't do anything." And to Tyra "Don't wander off."

Tyra huffed at him "I'm not the one who always wanders off."

"Canary Wharf?" He raised his eyebrows.

Tyra rolled her eyes "That was once," she groaned "You're not going to let me forget that anytime soon, are you?"

"No chance," the Doctor snorted.

"You better come back," Donna warned him.

The Doctor started up the ladder than had been revealed by the door "I couldn't get rid of you if I tried."

As soon as he was out of sight, Donna turned to Tyra "So, how long have you known him?"

"Oh, erm… About two years now," Tyra answered, quickly trying to get an estimated time "It's a little hard to tell with him sometimes."

Donna nodded "And…"

"Thames flood barrier right on top of us," the Doctor called out, jumping down the last few rungs of the ladder "Torchwood snuck in and built this place underneath."

Donna opened and closed her mouth a couple of times "What, there's like a secret base hidden underneath a major London landmark?"

"Oh, I know," the Doctor clucked jokingly "Unheard of." He turned and lead the way through a door and into some sort of laboratory at the end of the hall. There were massive tubes bubbling away and some chemistry equipment set up here and there "Oh, look at this," the Doctor marvelled "Stunning."

Donna reached out to touch the device in confusion "What does it do?"

"Particle extrusion," the Time Lord explained "Hold on." He ran over to another tube "They've been manufacturing Huon particles. Course, my people got rid of Huons. They unravel the atomic structure… But this lot are rebuilding them. They've been using the river. Extruding them through a flat hydrogen base so they've got the end result." The Doctor grabbed a vial with a clear liquid inside "Huon particles in liquid form."

"And that's what's inside of me?" Donna whispered. The Doctor nodded, turning a knob on top of the container, causing the liquid to glow gold. Not even a second later, Donna started glowing as well "Oh, my God."

The Doctor shook his head "Genius. Because the particles are inert, they need something living to catalyse inside and that's you. Saturate the body and then… Ha!" The Doctor jumped backwards "The wedding," he exclaimed "Yes, you're getting married, that's it. Best day of your life, walking down the aisle. Oh, your body's a battleground! There's a chemical war inside! Adrenaline, acetylcholine. Wham! go the endorphins. Oh, you're cooking! Yeah, you're like a walking oven. A pressure cooker, a microwave, all churning away. The particles reach boiling point. Shazam." A slap rang through the room again and the Doctor turned back to Donna "What did I do this time?"

Tyra raised a hand to her head in exasperation "You don't learn, do you?"

"Are you enjoying this?" Donna demanded "Right, just tell me. These particles, are they dangerous? Am I safe?"

The Doctor nodded quickly, too quickly "Yes."

"Doctor," Donna raised her eyebrow "If your lot got rid of Huon particles… Why did they do that?"

"Because they were deadly," the Doctor admitted, his voice low.

Donna stumbled back a few steps, raising a shaking hand to her mouth "Oh, my God."

"I'll sort it out, Donna," the Doctor assured her, squeezing her shoulders gently "Whatever's been done to you, I'll reverse it. I am not about to lose someone else."

"_Oh, she is long since lost,_" a voice rang out from somewhere above.

The Doctor looked over at Tyra but she just shrugged and shook her head "Nothing inside this room other than us." A wall in front of us slid up to reveal a tiered hole descending into the Earth "Urgh. Deja-vu."

"_I have waited so long,_" the voice murmured longingly "_Hibernating at the edge of the universe until the secret heart was uncovered and called out to waken._"

The Doctor walked forward, glancing down into the hole, ignoring the robots that were pointing their guns at them "Someone's been digging. Oh, very Torchwood. Drilled by laser." He looked up at the ceiling "How far down does it go?"

"_Down and down, all the way to the centre of the Earth,_" the voice answered.

"Really?" the Doctor blinked "Seriously? What for?"

Donna looked at the hole in consideration "Dinosaurs."

"What?" the Doctor frowned, turning around to face the woman dressed in white.

Donna shrugged unsurely "Dinosaurs?"

"How did you get dinosaurs?" Tyra asked with a small grin.

"That film," Donna murmured "Under the Earth with dinosaurs." She held up her hands at the look the Doctor shot her "Trying to help."

He shook his head "That's not helping."

"_Such a sweet couple,_" the voice cooed mockingly.

"Only a madman talks to thin air," the Doctor called out "And trust me, you don't want to make me mad. Where are you?"

The voice turned breathy "_High in the sky. Floating so high on Christmas night._"

The Doctor rolled his eyes "I didn't come all this way to talk on the intercom. Come on, let's have a look at you."

"_Who are you with such command?_" the voice demanded.

"I'm the Doctor."

"_Prepare your best medicines, doctor man, for you will be sick at heart._" With those words, a blue light started up on the other side of the hole and a giant, red spider appeared.

"Racnoss?" the Time Lord breathed "But that's impossible. You're one of the Racnoss?"

Tyra grimaced "I hate spiders…"

"Empress of the Racnoss," the spider corrected with a hiss.

It was then that Tyra heard footsteps from somewhere close to where the creepily huge spider was standing and raised her eyebrow when she saw Lance.

The Doctor tilted his head "If you're the Empress. Where's the rest of the Racnoss? Or are you the only one?"

"Such a sharp mind," the Empress complimented mockingly.

"That's it, the last of your kind," the Doctor mumbled, his tone sad "The Racnoss come from the Dark Times, billions of years ago. Billions. They were carnivores, omnivores. They devoured whole planets."

The Empress reared up "Racnoss are born starving. Is that our fault?"

"They eat people?" Donna breathed horrified.

The Doctor stared to the side, to a wall next to the Racnoss' head. Tyra didn't make an effort to check what the Doctor was looking for since her eyes were still trained on the man she had knocked unconscious not half an hour ago "HC Clements," the Doctor started "Did he wear those – those er, black and white shoes?"

"He did," Donna nodded with a grin "We used to laugh. We used to call him the fat cat in spats." The Doctor pointed to a pair of feet sticking out of tons of web across the ceiling, wearing black and white shoes "Oh, my God."

The Empress hummed happily "Mm. My Christmas dinner."

"You shouldn't even exist," the Doctor pointed out "Way back in history, the fledgeling Empires went to war against the Racnoss they were wiped out."

By then, Lance had reached the balcony above the Empress, an axe clutched in his hands. The Empress hissed angrily "Except for me."

Donna's eyes widened when she saw Lance up on the platform "But that's what I've got inside me, that Huon energy thing," she murmured, trying to stall. Tyra was about to mention something when the Doctor shook his head at her "Oi! Look at me, lady. I'm talking. Where do I fit in? How come I get all stacked up with these Huon particles? Look at me, you! Look me in the eye and tell me."

"The bride is so feisty," the Empress laughed. Lance was sneaking up on her, holding up the axe and looking like he was getting ready to take a swipe.

Donna nodded hurriedly "Yes, I am. And I don't know what you are, you big thing but a spider's just a spider and an axe is an axe." She stared at Lance "Now, do it."

"A spider is a spider?" Tyra repeated in amusement.

The smile was wiped from her face when Lance started laughing, dropping the axe "That was a good one. Your face."

"Lance is funny," the Empress laughed.

"What?" Donna breathed, staring at the scene in front of her in pain.

The Doctor looked at her sadly "I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?" Donna demanded "Lance, don't be stupid. Get her."

Lance rolled his eyes and glared down at them "God, she's thick. Months I've had to put up with her. Months. A woman who can't even point to Germany on a map."

"Better than being a lying slimeball," Tyra shot back with a sneer.

Donna shook her head, tears gathering in her eyes "I don't understand," she breathed, her voice sounding smaller than it had that day.

Tyra shifted "Donna… He has been lying to you from the start."

"How?"

"He made you coffee," the Doctor pointed out.

Donna blinked "What?"

Lance sighed in annoyance "Every day, I made you coffee."

"You had to be dosed with liquid particles over six months," the Doctor told her tightly.

"He was poisoning me," Donna realised.

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair as Tyra continued to glare at Lance "It was all there in the job title," he shrugged "The Head of Human Resources."

When the man caught Tyra's gaze, he actually stepped back, his expression betraying the fact that he was apprehensive when it came to her "This time, it's personnel," Lance smirked.

Donna stared up at him in disbelief, still not quite understanding what was going on. No, that wasn't right. She did understand but it hadn't really hit her yet "But we were getting married."

"Well," Lance shrugged unconcernedly "I couldn't risk you running off. I had to say yes. And then I was stuck with a woman who thinks the height of excitement is a new flavour Pringle. Oh, I had to sit there and listen to all that yap yap yap. Oh, Brad and Angelina. Is Posh pregnant? X-Factor, Atkins Diet, Feng Shui, split ends, text me, text me, text me. Dear God, the never-ending fountain of far, stupid trivia. I deserve a medal."

The Doctor shook his head at the man "Oh, is that what she's offered you? The Empress of the Racnoss? What are you, her consort?"

"Wait," Tyra raised her hand, a grimace flitting over her face "Don't… You do know that spiders eat their mates after… Right?!"

"It's better than a night with her," Lance pointed out with an ugly grimace.

Donna let out a low sob "But I love you."

"That's what made it easy," Lance dismissed "It's like you said, Doctor. The big picture. What's the point of it all if the Human race is nothing? That's what the Empress can give me. The chance to go out there. To see it. The size of it all. I think out of everyone the two of you understand that, don't you, Doctor?" He opened his mouth to include Tyra as well but then decided otherwise, just focussing his attention on the Doctor. Not that Tyra minded. If he had talked to Tyra, she could have probably just tried to kill him… For real this time.

The Empress narrowed her eyes "Who is this little physician?"

"She said Martian," Lance shrugged.

The Doctor sighed, throwing Donna a slightly exasperated look. Even if it was exactly what the Doctor needed. Better to be seen as Martian than to have her know where he really was from "Oh, I'm sort of homeless," he started, pacing closer to the hole in the ground "But the point is, what's down here? The Racnoss are extinct. What's going to help you four thousand miles down? That's just the molten core of the Earth, isn't it?"

"I think he wants us to talk," Lance snorted in amusement.

The Empress nodded "I think so too."

"Well, tough," Lance hissed, pointing at Donna "All we need is Donna."

"Kill this chattering little doctor man and the other girl," the Empress commanded.

Donna shook her head, inching in front of the Doctor "Don't hurt them."

Tyra grabbed onto her arm and shook her head "Don't."

"No, I won't let them," she told Tyra.

"At arms," the Empress shouted, causing the robots to point their guns at the Doctor and Tyra.

The Doctor raised his hands, his speech speeding up "Ah, now… Except."

"Take aim." Tyra pulled the Doctor back toward herself, making sure to stay between him and the robots again.

"Well," the Doctor started "I just want to point out the obvious…"

The Empress tilted her head "They won't hit the bride. They're such very good shots."

"Just… Just… Just… Hold on, just a tick," the Doctor hurried, almost stumbling over his words "Just a tiny… Just a little… tick. If you think about it, the particles activated in Donna and drew her inside my spaceship… So, if I reverse it and the spaceship should come to her." The Doctor turned the knob on the Huon container and the particles inside the bottle, along with Donna, glowed.

As the Tardis materialised around them, the Empress shouted "Fire."

"Off we go," the Doctor shouted, racing to the console.

Outside, Tyra could hear the Empress crying out "My key. My key…"

Donna walked over to the console, sitting down with her back to the Doctor as he ran around, putting in coordinates and flipping switches "Oh, you know what I said about time machines?" he mumbled to Donna "Well, I lied. And now we're going to use it." Tyra moved over to the dejected woman, not quite sure what to do "We need to find out what the Empress of the Racnoss is digging up. If something's buried at the planet core, it must've been there since the beginning. That's just brilliant. Molto bene! I've always wanted to see this."

Tyra slowly reached out for Donna "I'm pretty bad at comforting people in situations I don't know what to do," she admitted "But then again… The more I see people getting their heart broken, the more I don't ever want that to happen to me."

Donna sniffed a little before actually leaning into Tyra's soft touch "You've never been in love?" she questioned quietly.

"I… Don't know, actually. Well, no. I don't think so," she shrugged "Maybe? I just never got the chance to experience much… love."

"That's just sad," Donna scoffed, turning her head into Tyra's shoulder. She sighed, rubbing Donna's back as she started watering all over her.

The Tardis quieted down, having reached the destination. The Doctor peered around the console, catching Tyra's eye "We've arrived," he smiled lightly "Want to see?"

"I suppose," Donna mumbled, not moving from where she was sitting.

"The scanner's a bit small," the Doctor murmured looking at the monitor "Maybe your way's the best." He walked over to the door "Come on. No Human's ever seen this..: You'll be the first."

Tyra got up, pulling Donna up along with her while she complained tiredly "All I want to see is my bed."

The Doctor stepped to the side, revealing the outside "Donna Noble, Tyra Mikaelson, welcome to the creation of the Earth." Lumps of rock were floating around a dust-covered sun. The sun was different though… The light was a lot less normal, rather it glowed slightly red "We're gone back four point six billion years. There's no solar system, not yet. Only dust and rocks and gas. That's the Sun, over there." He pointed at the large star "Brand new. Just beginning to burn."

"Where's the Earth?" Donna asked, looking around.

"All around us," the Doctor gestured "In the dust."

Donna sighed "Puts the wedding in perspective. Lance was right… We're just tiny."

"No but that's what you do," the Doctor murmured with a grin. How he could still be so in love with the human race, Tyra will never know. He had seen so many bad things happening. Hell, she had seen a lot of bad things happening and she wouldn't have bothered anymore. Not until she met the Doctor anyway "The human race makes sense out of chaos. Marking it out with weddings and Christmas and calendars. This whole process is beautiful but only if it's being observed."

Donna stared at the dust "So I came out of all this?"

"Isn't that brilliant?" the Doctor grinned.

A large rock drifted past, causing Donna to let out a snort "I think that's the Isle of Wright."

The Doctor pointed to the rocks that were drifting towards each other "Eventually, gravity takes hold. Say, one big rock, heavier than the others, starts to pull other rocks towards it. All the dust and gas and elements get pulled in. Everything, piling in until you get…"

"The Earth," Donna nodded.

"But the question is… What was that first rock?" the Doctor mused.

A seven-pointed star came out of the dust cloud and Tyra tapped the Doctor's shoulder "I think we just found it."

"The Racnoss…" the Doctor breathed before rushing back to the console, turning the wheel frantically "Hold on. The Racnoss are hiding from the war. What's it doing?"

The rocks and particles of dust and gas started to zoom past. As if they were drawn to the Racnoss by magnetic force "Exactly what you said would happen," Tyra gave back "They're drawing in the rocks."

"Oh, they didn't just bury something at the centre of the Earth," the Doctor groaned "They became the centre of the Earth. The first rock." He looked up, stunned as the Tardis started shuddering violently, nearly knocking them off our feet.

"What was that?" Donna shouted, holding onto one of the corals as Tyra quickly shut the doors, trying to stop any of them from being thrown into space.

The Doctor looked up "Trouble." The Tardis continued to shudder and shake, throwing them all over.

"What the hell is it doing?" Donna demanded, trying to make her way over to the Doctor as the shaking became worse.

"Remember that little trick of mine?" the Doctor called back "Particles pulling particles? Well, it works in reverse. They're pulling us back."

Tyra caught Donna when she came stumbling past her and rolled her eyes sarcastically "Of course, they are. Why wouldn't they?"

"Well, can't you stop it?" Donna frowned "Hasn't it got a handbrake? Can't you reverse or warp or beam or something?"

The Doctor let out a sigh "Backseat driver," he complained "Oh. Wait a minute… The extrapolator." He pulled out the pan-dimensional surfboard… "It can't stop us but it should give us a good bump."

"You still have that?" Tyra asked, raising an eyebrow "I thought you would have gotten rid of it after what happened in Cardiff."

Donna raised her eyebrow curiously "What happened in Cardiff?"

"What did you do to Nerys?" she shot back.

The Doctor had his trusted hammer in his hand, getting ready to use it "Now," he shouted, causing them to dematerialise and materialise "We're about two hundred yards to the right."

* * *

"Come on."

Donna ran after him, holding up her skirt "But what do we do?"

"I don't know," the Doctor shook his head. He put a stethoscope to the door, listening to what was behind it "I make it up as I go along. But trust me, I've got a history."

"But I still don't understand," Donna shook her head "I'm full of particles… But what for?"

"There's a Racnoss web at the centre of the Earth," the Doctor began, starting another of his rambling explanations "But my people unravelled their power source. The Huon particles ceased to exist but the Racnoss are stuck."

Tyra whirled around when she heard movement behind her and gasped quietly when something was thrust into her lung. One of the robots was standing in front of her, a knife in its hand while the other had grabbed Donna from behind, covering her mouth. Tyra sank to her knees, trying to draw in a breath but it was proving to be a challenge "Doc… Doctor," Tyra gasped out.

"They've just been in hibernation for billions of years. Frozen. Dead. Kaput. So, you're the new key. Brand new particles, living particles. They need you to open it, Donna and… and you have never been so quiet." He turned around to look behind him only to notice that Donna was gone and Tyra was on the ground, gasping for breath "Ty…"

She scrambled to pull at the knife, her fingers continued to slip from it, making it even more slippery with blood "Get… out…"

The Doctor reached out to grab a hold of the knife "I'm sorry," he whispered, pulling it out with a quick motion. Tyra let out a low scream, pitching forward to land against his side "Are you alright?"

"I… will… be," she nodded, her breathing becoming easier as her lung healed itself "Robots took Donna."

The Doctor helped Tyra to her feet, letting her lean against him to regain her balance. He opened the door with the sonic only to find yet another robot pointing its gun at them "Really?" he sighed, making quick work of it "Let's go and get Donna." He grabbed the robot's cloak before hurrying to the drilling site.

* * *

As soon as she entered, Tyra could see the Huon particles leaving both Donna and Lance who had been strung up directly over the deep hole "The secret heart unlocks," the Empress exclaimed "And they will waken from their Sleep of Ages."

"Who will?" Donna shouted "What's down there?"

Lance shot her an annoyed look "How thick are you?"

"My children," the Empress explained, ignoring the Humans' bickering "The long lost Racnoss, now reborn to feast on flesh. The web star shall come to me." Tyra shivered when she heard hundreds – if not thousands – of legs scurrying up the hole. She really didn't like spiders "My babies will be hungry. They need sustenance. Perish the web."

"Use her," Lance shouted hysterically, fighting against the bonds "Use her."

The Empress sent the man a feral grin "Oh, my funny little Lance. But you are quite impolite to your lady friend. The Empress does not approve." The web released Lance, causing him to fall into the hole.

"Lance," Donna called after him. Despite everything she had found out, she still loved him…

The Empress reared up "Harvest the Humans. Reduce them to meat. My children are climbing toward me and none shall stop them." Her head snapped around to the disguised Doctor walking up the steps above Tyra "So you might as well unmask, my clever little doctor man."

The Doctor removed the mask and robe he had taken and sighed "Oh well. Nice try," he shrugged "I've got you, Donna."

"But Doctor… Tyra," Donna called out "They stabbed her."

"Hold on," the Doctor smiled, pointing his sonic at her.

The web started to give away and Donna let out a scream "I'm going to fall."

"You're going to swing," the Doctor called up "I've got you."

Donna swung across the hole with a shrill scream, past the Empress. Why Tyra saw her coming in lower than the Doctor had expected, she shot forward, catching her before she could hit the wall "You good?" Tyra asked, steadying her.

"You… But they stabbed you," Donna stuttered, throwing her arms around Tyra.

"I'm a bit more resilient than people might think," she shrugged with a grin.

The Empress hissed in annoyance "The doctor man amuses me."

"Empress of the Racnoss," the Doctor spoke up, the Oncoming Storm lurking just beneath the surface "I give you one last chance. I can find you a planet. I can find you and your children a place in the universe to coexist. Take that offer and end this now."

"These men are so funny," the Empress chuckled.

The Doctor narrowed his eyes "What's your answer?"

"Oh, I'm afraid I have to decline," the Empress smirked.

"What happens next is your own doing," the Doctor warned, setting his face determinedly.

The Empress scoffed "I'll show you what happens next. At arms," she shouted "Take aim. And…"

"Relax," the Doctor finished, causing the robots to slump.

Donna let out a gasp "What did you do?"

"Guess what I've got, Donna," the Doctor grinned, pulling out the remote he had slipped in earlier "Pockets."

"How did that fit in there?"

Tyra patted her shoulder "Bigger on the inside. Mine are too," she told her, gesturing to the jacket she was wearing.

Donna stared at the jacket for a moment before she reached out, slipping her hand inside "That's… That's just…"

"Robo-forms are not necessary," the Empress recovered "My children may feast on Martian flesh."

"Oh, but I'm not from Mars," the Doctor tilted his head.

The Empress stopped "Then where?"

The Doctor looked her dead in the eyes "My home planet is long since gone but its name lives on." He paused dramatically "Gallifrey."

"They murdered the Racnoss," the Empress exclaimed, rearing away from the Doctor some more.

"I warned you," the Doctor pointed out "You did this." He pulled out some of the Christmas tree decorations from another pocket, throwing the baubles in the air as the Empress started shaking her head, pleading. With the remote, he directed them, blowing several holes in the corridor wall, letting the Thames in whilst the others surrounded the Empress. Fires broke out everywhere and manhole covers burst under the pressure of the water rushing in.

"No," the Empress shouted in despair as water flooded down the hole, bringing alien screams from far down "No. My children! No, my children. My children."

Donna stared up at the Time Lord, a horrified expression on her face "Why aren't you stopping him?" she hissed before addressing the Doctor "Doctor… You can stop now."

"My children."

That shout seemed to rip him out of his trance "Come on." He jerked his head up "Time I got you out."

Tyra herded Donna to the stairs, letting her go up in front of her. The Doctor helped the dress-clad woman climb over the rubble before holding out his hand for Tyra. She shivered at the coldness of the water but followed the other two up the stairs.

Underneath them, between the water and the flames, the Racnoss leaned her head back to the ceiling "Transport me."

"But what about the Empress?" Donna called out, looking down from her spot on the ladder.

The Doctor glanced back down as well "She's used up all her Huon energy. She's defenceless." He reached the top and climbed out in time to reveal the fireworks. Tanks had fired at the spaceship which caused it to explode over Canary Wharf.

Tyra sat down on the edge of the manhole cover while the other two stood next to her. Donna cleared her throat once she was more or less steady "Just there's one problem…"

"What is that?" the Doctor frowned.

Donna pointed to the side, drawing their attention to the very much empty river "We've drained the Thames."

* * *

They were parked just outside of Donna's house. Across the street "There we go," the Doctor nodded, patting the Tardis' side "Told you she'd be alright. She can survive anything."

Donna hummed "More than I've done."

The Doctor quickly scanned her with the sonic "No, all the Huon particles have gone. No damage, you're fine."

"Yeah, but apart from that," Donna shrugged "I missed my wedding, lost my job and became a widow on the same day. Sort of."

Tyra looked up at her "He would have been still alive if he hadn't been an idiot. I mean… He kinda walked right into that."

"Tyra," the Doctor warned "Be nice."

"He deserved it," Donna mumbled before she stopped "No, he didn't. I'd better get inside. They'll be worried."

The Doctor nodded "Best Christmas present they could have." Inside the house, Donna's mother and grandfather hugged "Oh, no. I forgot you hate Christmas."

"Yes, I do."

"Even if it snows?" the Doctor questioned, reaching into the Tardis. The lamp on top of the blue box turned yellow and fired off a bolt of energy into the sky which caused an instant snow shower.

Donna laughed in shocked surprise "I can't believe you did that."

"I can," Tyra snorted, leaning her head against the Time Lord's shoulder. She hadn't been very talk active today just because she was still hung up over the fact that she lost Henrik for a third time now. She thought last time was bad enough… This time was way worse and she couldn't stop looking at the pictures she had of him now. Whether this made the whole thing better or worse, she didn't know.

"Basic atmospheric excitation," the Doctor shrugged, his chin on Tyra's head

"Merry Christmas," Donna mumbled.

The Doctor looked at her "And you. So, what will you do with yourself?"

"Not getting married, for starters," she huffed.

Tyra grinned "That's a good idea, I guess."

"And I'm not going to temp anymore," she continued "I don't know. Travel? See a bit more of planet Earth. Walk in the dust. Just go out there and do something."

The Doctor looked down at me for a moment before turning back to Donna "Well, you could always…"

"What?"

"Come with us?" he shrugged.

Donna bit her lip "No."

"Okay," the Doctor nodded, his arms tightening around Tyra.

Donna sighed "I can't."

"You're fine," Tyra told her "It's up to you."

"No, but really," she cut her off before Tyra could say anything else "Everything we did today. Do you live your lives like that?"

The Doctor shook his head "Not all the time."

"I think you do. And I couldn't," Donna told him.

"But you've seen it out there," the Doctor pointed out "It's beautiful. Isn't it, Ty?"

She nodded "It really is. But Doctor…"

"It's terrible," Donna cut in again "That place was flooding and burning and they were dying… And you were stood there like, I don't know, a stranger. And then you made it snow. I mean, you scare me to death."

Tyra stiffened at her words, knowing how it impacted the Doctor "Donna…"

"And you," she turned to me "I'm still not sure whether to believe you or nor but… I wanted to apologize again. For the way, I acted in the beginning. Towards both of you."

"It's alright," Tyra shrugged "I probably would have reacted similarly."

The Doctor flicked her ear "Somehow I doubt that."

Donna stared at the girl for a moment before she shook her head "Tell you what I will do, though. Christmas dinner." The Doctor looked at her unmoved "Oh, come on."

"I don't do that sort of thing," he denied.

"You did it last year," Donna pointed out "You said so. And you might as well because Mum always cooks enough for twenty."

The Doctor hummed "Tyra doesn't celebrate Christmas. I don't want her to spend the evening alone again." He pinched me "Not like last year."

"In your defence… You were kind of busy," Tyra told him.

"Why don't you celebrate Christmas?" Donna frowned in confusion.

Tyra pointed to herself "I'm Viking. We don't do Christmas."

"Viking? No, never mind. Come on," the redhead pleaded "Please?"

Tyra looked at her and then up at the Doctor "You can go but I won't celebrate Christmas. Not if I don't have to."

The Doctor looked at her in consideration before he sighed in defeat "Oh, alright then. If you're sure, Ty…" He looked to Donna "But you go first. Better warn them and… Don't say I'm a Martian." He gestured back to the Tardis "I just have to park her properly. She might drift off to the Middle Ages. I'll see you in a minute."

"You're terrible," Tyra snorted, following him to the console.

He started up the engines, ready to take off when we heard Donna's voice through the door "Doctor! Tyra!"

The Doctor shut the Tardis down again, sticking his head out of the doors "Blimey, you can shout."

"Am I ever going to see you again?" Donna questioned softly.

"If I'm lucky," Doctor shrugged.

Donna smiled at him "Just promise me one thing… Keep Tyra around? She's good for you. Because I think sometimes… You need someone to stop you."

"Yeah," the Doctor agreed quietly "Thanks, then, Donna. Good luck. And… just be magnificent."

"I think I will," she nodded determinedly "Doctor?"

He rolled his eyes in mock annoyance "Oh, what is it now?"

"That friend of yours. What was her name?"

The Doctor looked at her for a moment "Rose," he finally replied "Her name was Rose." With that, he closed the door behind him. He grabbed Tyra's hand, pulling her through the corridor after having put the Tardis into the Vortex. He was sick of getting interrupted and if this was the only way, he would take it.

Tyra walked after him, an amused smile on her face "Where are we going?"

"Somewhere we won't be interrupted," the Doctor huffed, his hearts picking up the pace, the closer they got to the Chinese gardens.

As soon as they were in the gardens, they walked over to the bridge and made themselves comfortable.

"So," Tyra spoke up nervously, kicking her legs over the edge of the bridge "What did you want to talk about?"

"I... Honestly, I've been thinking about this for a while and wanted to talk to you about this..."

Tyra tilted her head "What?"

"I - I like you," he stuttered, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Okay? I… Like you too?" Tyra replied in confusion.

The Doctor shook his head "No, no… What I meant to say was that I… I have feelings for you."

"What?" Tyra blinked in surprise "I..."

The Doctor held up his hand to stop her "Ty, please... Just tell me one thing before we go any further. Do you feel the same?"

Tyra shook her head "How can you like me?" she asked, kicking at the water in frustration "I'm a monster. No one lo... likes monsters."

"You are not a monster," the Doctor hissed out, grabbing her by the shoulders. When she went to argue, he leaned in and in a burst of confidence pressed a kiss to her lips "If you were a monster, would I have done this? I will ask again. Do you feel the same for me as I do for you?"

Tyra stared at him with wide eyes and reached up to touch her lips "Yeah. But... Why?" she asked, wrapping her arms around herself.

The Doctor frowned "Why what?"

"Why me? You can do so much better," she mumbled, letting her hair fall in front of her face.

"No way," the Doctor shook his head "Ty, I really like you. Please... Why not just give us a chance?"

Tyra bit her lip "I just can't," she whispered "Not yet."

The Doctor felt as if he should be disappointed but she said that she felt the same. She. Felt. The Same… A grin stole its way across his face as he looked at Tyra "I'm just going to have to convince you, then," he proclaimed.

"Yeah… Wait, what?" Tyra asked, shaking her head "You don't have to convince me, Doctor. I just… Need a bit more time. I'm sorry."

He sighed, grabbing her hands "You have nothing to be sorry for and I understand. I think one of the reasons I confessed is because Damon kept going on about it."

She let out a small laugh "You got the talk too, then?"

"Apparently," he nodded, leaning his head down, to press their foreheads together.

* * *

They parted way for the night and Tyra spent the next hours tossing and turning until she finally threw off the blankets, getting up. She was extremely restless and couldn't lie still long enough for her to fall asleep. Her talk with the Doctor was bouncing around in her head along with every memory she had of Henrik.

She wandered through the hallways of the Tardis until she had found her way back to the Chinese garden. The peaceful atmosphere of it almost immediately relaxed her, so she curled up on the bridge her and the Doctor had been on earlier.

Her feet were dangling over the edge, her bare toes just brushing the warm water lightly as her eyes kept drifting close.

"You're going to drown if you go on like that," the Doctor pointed out with amusement shining in his eyes "What are you still doing here?"

Tyra raised her shoulders in a shrug "Again. Not still… Couldn't sleep."

He sat down next to her with a sigh "Does it have anything to do with you not being on top of your game? Or with that little talk we had earlier?"

"Both? Either? I don't know," she mumbled weakly "I thought I could handle it but… What the hell is wrong with me? Why can't I forget?"

The Doctor's eyes softened and he pulled her against him, ignoring her protests "You're talking about seeing him again, aren't you?"

"Yeah," Tyra breathed "I honestly don't know how Rose could do it. Just seeing him once in the parallel world enough… How could she actually want to watch her father die?"

"Well, she did quite badly at that," the Doctor shrugged, resting his chin on her head "Is it really about that?"

Tyra sniffed "I'm just… I'm so tired of being alone. My whole family leaves me soon or later and I don't know what to do about it. Then I see them, all happy and together and… without me." She buried her head in the Doctor's chest "Do you think it is because of me?"

"What? No," the Doctor shook his head.

"But the only thing that is missing in the parallel world is me," Tyra whispered "Doesn't that make me the reason?"

The Doctor tilted her head up "Tyra, listen to me. What happened is not because of you, alright? You told me that your father has been the way you know him because Freya died here, in this universe." He cupped her cheeks, rubbing his thumbs along her skin gently "Your siblings love you. Niklaus loves you, even if you don't think so."

"But why don't they care enough to stay?" she asked in a small voice "Nik has been daggering me for centuries, Kol and Finn left me along and the other two… Sometimes I think they don't even care about me anymore."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes. He couldn't get annoyed at her for being insecure. She had been wearing this mask for too long, even longer than him. Sure, he was older but Tyra has been dealing with everything her whole life while his worst memories came from the Time War "Kol and Finn didn't leave voluntarily. I don't know about Elijah and… was it Rebekah? But I can tell you without a shadow of doubt that Niklaus does love you in his own way. I don't know about his reasons for stick daggers into you but maybe that's something you should talk to him about when you see him again?"

"That doesn't matter," she shook her head "I'm just so sick of being treated like I'm nothing."

"Hey," the Doctor frowned "Where does this come from, hm?"

Tyra looked down and shook her head "Just… Memories," she mumbled, not wanting to tell him that Donna's words had hit her harder than she let them know. She couldn't blame her though. It wasn't like she's wrong.

"Come on," the Doctor groaned, getting up. He held out his hand for Tyra to take.

"Where are we going?"

The Doctor raised his eyebrow "You're going to bed, missy. You look like a ghost…"

"Thanks," Tyra rolled her eyes sarcastically but let him lead her to her room.

**Okay, then. Here is Donna. I'm about to cry thanks to fucking up my first exam at uni... Oh well. Hopefully, the others will be better. **

**Nick**


	17. Smith and Jones

Tyra walked into the orthopaedic ward of the hospital after slipping out for a bit while the Doctor faked sleep. As soon as she entered, she saw a group of people in lab coats surrounding the Doctor's hospital bed. Why he had decided to actually check-in and not just hang around, Tyra didn't know. Especially with the small issue of him having two hears. But then again… he couldn't have persuaded her into admitting since she was just as likely to get noticed. Maybe not quite as likely but then again, her heartbeat was noticeably slower than that of a Human. It was enough to raise suspicion at the very least.

"Now then, Mister Smith," Doctor Stoker nodded as Tyra joined the Doctor, sitting down in the chair that was waiting for her. She only knew the doctor's name because he was the one who had examined the Doctor yesterday "A very good morning to you. How are you today?"

The Doctor who had been looking at Tyra with a raised eyebrow turned to face the man "Oh, not so bad. Still a bit, you know, blah." He grimaced as he said that.

Stoker turned to the group with him "John Smith, admitted yesterday with severe abdominal pains. Jones, why don't you see what you can find? Amaze me."

A dark-skinned woman who had actually introduced herself to Tyra when they bumped into each other earlier, walked forward "That wasn't very clever, running around outside, was it?" Tyra stood up when the medical student went to stand on the side she was sitting, retreating a little so she could access the Doctor better.

"Sorry?" the Doctor blinked in confusion.

"On Chancellor Street this morning?" Martha leaned frowned "You came up to me and took your tie off."

Tyra crossed her arms, sending the Doctor a mock frown "Did you sneak out without me again?"

"Ty," the Doctor exclaimed in annoyance before looking up at Martha "I was here, in bed. Ask the nurses. Or Tyra when she stops being a pain."

Tyra grinned, not insulted in the slightest "He was here all night," she assured Martha.

"Well, that's weird," she murmured "Cause it looked like you. Have you got a brother?"

"No," the Doctor shook his head, expression saddening "Not anymore. Just me."

Stoke cleared his throat impatiently "As time passes and I grow ever more infirm and weary, Miss Jones."

"Sorry. Right," Martha winced, reaching out to listen to the Doctor's chest. She froze and Tyra pouted a little at the fact that she couldn't see her expression. Her head snapped around, earning a wink from the Doctor.

"I weep for future generations. Are you having trouble locating the heart, Miss Jones?" Stoker shook his head with a disappointed frown.

Martha straightened "Er, I don't know," she stuttered "Stomach cramps?"

"That is a symptom, not a diagnosis," Stoker lectured "And you rather failed basic techniques by not consulting first with the patient's chart." He picked up the chart at the end of the bed, dropping it in shock when he got an electric shock.

"That happened to me this morning," Martha pointed out.

"I had the same thing on the door handle," a young man cut in.

"And me, on the lift," another female medical student, Tyra didn't know the name of, nodded.

Stoker straightened up importantly "That's only to be expected," he shrugged off "There's a thunderstorm moving in and lightning is a form of static electricity, as was first proven by… Anyone?"

"Benjamin Franklin," the Doctor answered immediately and Tyra barely withheld the groan. She had a feeling of how that would end.

"Correct," Stoker nodded.

The Doctor apparently didn't get the hint to just shut up and continued with a grin "My mate, Ben. That was a day and a half. I got rope burns off that kite and then I got soaked."

"Quite," Stoker replied, seemingly not sure what to make of the man in front of him.

"And then I got electrocuted," the Doctor finished off.

Stoker sighed "Moving on;" he called, leaning over to one of the students as he was leading them away "I think perhaps a visit from psychiatric. And next, we have…"

"Out of curiosity. What would you have done if that med student had said anything?" Tyra asked as soon as they were out of hearing range.

The Doctor waved his hand dismissively "She wouldn't have. Also… I wanted to see how she'd react."

Tyra raised an eyebrow "And the thing about this morning?"

"I don't know," the Doctor shook his head "And I really don't like not knowing. But…" His eyes narrowed at her "Where have you been?"

"Blood bank," she shrugged.

The Doctor closed his eyes for a moment "Please… Please tell me you didn't steal from the blood bank when the Tardis is right outside."

"I'm not going to tell you then," Tyra shrugged, leaning back against the chair.

"Tyra," the Doctor sighed "You could have just gone and grabbed one from the Tardis. What could possibly happen within a few minutes of you being gone?" She gave him a scathing look and gestured to the window on the other side of the bed. While he had been lecturing, it had started to rain… upside-down "Oh."

Tyra crossed her arms with a smug grin "Oh? That's all you have to say?"

"Yes. It's all…" The Doctor grabbed a dressing gown, practically leaping out of the bed "Come on. Let's go and have a look."

"Alright then," Tyra shrugged, following him outside.

The Doctor stopped outside the door, looking up and down the corridor "So… Any idea on where to go there?"

"Maybe," Tyra grinned, rolling her eyes at his lacking sense of direction. Somehow it felt like it had only gotten worse the more time passed "Come on. Let's try this way."

* * *

They had just gotten back to the ward after not finding anything unusual apart from the rain when the whole building started to shake. Tyra fell into the Doctor, only being saved from hitting her head against the bedside table by the Doctor's arms wrapped around her waist "Are you okay?" he asked as soon as she found her balance.

Tyra nodded, glancing out of the window "I feel like that's all you've been asking me recently."

"Oh, it is but I worry," he grinned "I'm sure you can think of a way to stop me from being worried."

"Did you notice that we're on the moon yet?" Tyra asked rhetorically, looking out of the window.

The Doctor hummed "I knew there was something going to happen here."

Tyra was about to say something scathing when two medical students hurried inside "Alright now," Martha called out "Everyone back to bed. We've got an emergency but we'll sort it out. Don't worry."

The Doctor watched her for a moment before drawing the curtain. Tyra raised her eyebrow at him and he shrugged "Normally, I'd suggest you get out but… I'm sure you don't mind watching me change, do you, Tyra? After all, you like me too."

Tyra blushed at the implication and shook her head, leaving the curtained off area to watch the people around her.

"It's real," Martha breathed "It's really real. Hold on." She reached up to open the window in front of her.

The other medical student let out a shout, panic and fear written all over her face "Don't. We'll lose all the air."

"But they're not exactly air-tight," Martha pointed out "If the air was going to get sucked out, it would have happened straight away but it didn't. So how come?"

The Doctor opened the curtain forcefully "Very good point," he remarked, wearing a blue suit. Tyra was internally contemplating whether she preferred the brown over the blue or the blue over the brown… Oh well, both looked pretty good on him. She shook her head and sighed. This was harder than it should be… "Brilliant, in fact. What was your name?"

"Martha," she answered, staring at the Doctor in confusion.

The Doctor nodded "And it was Jones, wasn't it?" When she nodded in reply, he moved forward, looking out of the window "Well then, Martha Jones, the question is, how are we still breathing?"

"We can't be," the other medical student shook her head hysterically.

"Obviously we are, so don't waste my time," the Doctor dismissed "Martha, what have we got?" He looked around the ward "Is there a balcony on this floor or a veranda or…"

Martha cut him off "By the patients' lounge, yeah."

"See? That's how you be helpful, Ty," the Doctor shot at her with a grin "Fancy going out?"

"Okay," Martha shrugged.

The Doctor raised his eyebrow "We might die."

There was a smile blooming on Martha's face "We might not."

"Good," the Doctor complimented "Come on." Before he turned, he gestured to the still fearful medical student behind Martha "Not her, she'd hold us up." Then the Doctor tilted his head at Tyra "Are you coming too?"

Tyra raised an eyebrow "I thought I wasn't being helpful? But yes, I would like nothing more… Except maybe that trip you promised to Barcelona…"

"You were the one who didn't want to go the last time I offered," the Doctor pointed out as they walked through the hallways after the medical student.

"True," Tyra agreed "But then again. The Olympiad was pretty awesome as well. Until you disappeared that is."

The Doctor huffed "That was not my fault."

"It was a little bit," she told him.

"It was not," the Doctor muttered.

Martha turned around and Tyra was sure she had been listening to every word they had said "We're here." She gestured to the glass doors in front of them.

"Right." The Doctor's attention turned to the doors and went to open them.

The trio stepped out, each breathing in deeply "We've got air," Martha gasped "How does that work?"

"Just be glad it does," the Doctor shot back.

Martha swallowed heavily, staring out toward the Earth "I've got a party tonight. It's my brother's twenty-first. My mother's going to be really, really…"

The Doctor glanced over at her curiously "You okay?"

"Yeah," Martha nodded, not very convincingly.

Tyra raised her eyebrows, tilting her head to the side "You sure about that?"

"Yeah."

"Want to go back in?" the Doctor offered.

Martha snorted "No way. I mean, we could die any minute but all the same, it's beautiful."

The Doctor smiled lightly "Do you think?"

"How many people want to go to the moon?" she pointed out excitedly "And here we are."

"Standing in the Earthlight," the Doctor murmured, wrapping his arm around Tyra's waist to pull her against his side.

Martha turned to look at them "What do you think happened?"

"What do you think?" the Doctor retorted.

"Extra-terrestrial," Martha replied instantly "It's got to be. I don't know, a few years ago that would have sounded mad but these days? That spaceship flying over Big Ben, Christmas, those Cybermen things. I had a cousin… Adeola. She worked at Canary Wharf. She never came home."

The Doctor's arm tightened "I'm sorry."

"Yeah," Martha breathed, once again staring out onto the surface of the moon.

"We were there," the Doctor spoke up after a moment of silence "In the battle."

Martha once again turned towards us "I promise you, Mister Smith… And I don't know your name."

"Tyra," Tyra introduced herself "Tyra Mikaelson."

"Alright, then," Martha nodded "I promise you both, we will find a way out. If we can travel to the moon, then we can travel back. There's got to be a way."

The Doctor winced and scratched the back of his head "It's not Smith. That's no my real name."

Martha raised her eyebrow "Who are you, then?"

"I'm the Doctor."

"Me too, if I can pass my exams," Martha sighed "What is it then, Doctor Smith?"

The Doctor sighed, more than used to people questioning him about his name "Just the Doctor."

"How do you mean, just the Doctor?"

"Just the Doctor," he agreed.

Martha raised her eyebrows "What, people call you the Doctor?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I'm not," Martha shook her head "As far as I'm concerned, you've got to earn that title."

Tyra leaned closer to the Doctor with a teasing grin "Ooh. Good luck with earning your own name back."

"Shush," the Doctor mumbled "Well, I'd better make a start, then. Let's have a look." He knelt down to pick up a small rock "There must be some sort of…" He threw the rock as hard as he could, causing it to bounce off of something a few meters out "Forcefield keeping the air in."

Martha leaned forward "But if that's like a bubble sealing us in, that means this is the only air we've got. What happens when it runs out?"

"How many people in this hospital?"

"I don't know," Martha shrugged "A thousand?"

The Doctor's face was set "One thousand people suffocating," he stated grimly.

Martha gasped "Why would anyone want to do that?"

Tyra jerked when, all of a sudden, the deafening noise of several spaceships landing broke the peacefulness "Head's up," the Doctor warned "Ask them yourself."

Three massive columnar spaceships passed overhead, landing a little outside the forcefield. As soon as they spaceships had landed, some kind of beings came stomping out in military formation "Aliens," Martha exclaimed, sounding a mix between excited and scared "That's aliens. Real, proper aliens."

"Judoon," the Doctor muttered before running back inside.

* * *

Tyra glanced down to where the Humans were huddled together in a panic as the Judoon passed through the forcefield and into the hospital. The people started screaming, running and hiding behind chairs in the waiting area. What appeared to be the leader took off his helmet, revealing the two-horned rhino that the Doctor had described when explaining to her about the Judoon "Blos so folt do no cro blos cos so ro." The other Judoon drew their weapons, pointing them at the scared Humans.

One of the medical students who had been in the Doctor's room earlier, straightened up nervously "Er, we are citizens of planet Earth. We welcome you in peace." The lead Judoon pushed him against the wall, shining a blue light into his mouth "Please don't hurt me. I was just trying to help. I'm sorry, don't hurt me. Please don't hurt me."

"Language assimilated," the Judoon nodded after playing the recording back and plugging the device into his armour "Designation Earth English. You will be catalogued." He once again shone the light into the man's face "Category Human. Catalogue all suspects." The Judoon drew a cross on the medical student's hand before moving on.

Tyra turned to look at the Doctor, waiting to see what he would do but his attention was on something else "Oh, look," he grinned "You've got a little shop. I like a little shop."

Martha raised her eyebrow at him "Never mind that," she hissed "What are Judoon?"

"They're like police," the Doctor explained, running a hand through his already messy hair "Well, police for hire. They're more like interplanetary thugs."

Tyra leaned against the flowerpot lightly "And I'm guessing they brought us here with that rain… You said something earlier but – Well, I didn't listen. Although… Doc, if they catalogue Human…?"

"Why are we on the moon?" Martha asked before Tyra could finish her sentence.

"Neutral territory," the Doctor shrugged, squeezing Tyra's hand lightly "According to galactic law, they've got no jurisdiction over the Earth and they isolated it. That rain, lightning? Like Tyra said… It was them, using an H2O scoop."

Martha stared at him as if he was crazy "What are you on about, galactic law? Where'd you get that from? If they're police, are we under arrest? Are we trespassing on the moon or something?"

"No, but I like that," the Doctor murmured, sounding slightly impressed with the girl "Good thinking." Then he sighed and shook his head "No, I wish it were that simple. They're making a catalogue. That means they're after something non-Human, which is very bad news for me."

"I told you," Tyra coughed.

Martha looked from Tyra to the Doctor and back. This repeated a couple of times before she let out a breath "Why?" When the Doctor looked at her seriously, she snorted "Oh, you're kidding me. Don't be ridiculous. Stop looking at me like that."

"Come on then," the Doctor waved, tugging Tyra over by the hand he was still holding.

As they continued hurrying through the corridors, Tyra licked her lips nervously "What are you going to do?"

"We're going to look for the non-Human right now," he explained hurriedly "Hopefully we can find them before…"

Tyra glanced behind her "Do you want me to distract them?"

"No," the Doctor snapped before shaking his head, slower "Sorry… No." He glanced at a sign that said 'Admin office' and pushed her inside, going to work on the computer with his sonic.

Martha entered the room as well, panting a little "They've reached the third floor." She frowned at the device in the Doctor's hand "What's that thing?"

"Sonic screwdriver," the Doctor shrugged.

"Well, if you're not going to answer me properly," Martha huffed.

The Doctor looked up in confusion "No, really, it is. It's a screwdriver and it's sonic."

"Not many people are impressed by a screwdriver, Doctor," Tyra grinned "I don't think that's going to change."

He pouted lightly "But you… You like it, don't you, Ty?"

Tyra rolled her eyes "Well, I'm going to have to, don't I? With all of the times, that thing got us out of trouble."

"That's not very nice."

"Have you got a laser spanner as well?" Martha asked, once again cutting into their conversation. Not that Tyra could blame her. She knew that the Doctor and she had the habit of going on a bit.

The Doctor's pout came back immediately "I did but it was stolen by Emily Pankhurst, cheeky woman…" He hit the computer harshly "Oh, this computer. The Judoon must have locked it down. Judoon platoon upon the moon…" The Doctor tilted his head in exasperation "Because we were just travelling past. I swear, we were just wandering. I wasn't looking for trouble, honestly, I wasn't but I noticed these plasma coils around the hospital and that lightning, that's a plasma coil. Been building up for two days now, so I checked in. I thought something was going on inside…"

"You don't have to look at me," Tyra held up her hands "I knew exactly that this was going to turn into a mess. Things normally do around you."

"They do not," he exclaimed.

Tyra crossed her arms "Do too."

"Are you two done acting like two-year-olds?" Martha crossed her arms, looking faintly amused "What are they looking for?"

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair again "Something that looks Human but isn't."

"Like you, apparently," Martha pointed out before looking to Tyra "Are you alien as well?"

Tyra shook her head "I was born on Earth." She closed her eyes for a moment before looking up at the Doctor "I really think now would be a good idea to go and make that distraction. They're coming closer."

"I don't want you to put yourself into danger, Tyra," the Doctor explained.

"Does that really matter right now?" Tyra demanded quietly "You are the one who normally cares about Humans and… Well, about everyone really. They could die if we don't do anything." She licked her lips "Yes, I might have made a mistake when just running off at Torchwood but…"

He whirled around, grabbing her shoulders "I don't care about that… I care about you. You're constantly putting yourself in danger and I don't like seeing you get hurt."

"This might be our only option though…" Tyra trailed off.

Martha bit her lip "What are we looking for anyway?"

"I don't know," the Doctor sighed, still locked in a staring match with Tyra "Say, any patient admitted in the past week with unusual symptoms." He whiled back to the computer after relaxing his shoulder and looking away "Maybe there's a back-up," he mumbled.

"Just keep working," Martha nodded "I'll go ask Mister Stoker. He might know."

"I'll come with you," Tyra said.

The Doctor's head snapped around, knowing exactly what she planned "Tyra…"

"Don't even try," she shook her head "I know why you're doing this, Doctor, I really do. But I won't have you treating me like I'm made out of glass all of a sudden." She squared her shoulders "If you feel like you can't do that, then I don't know if…"

He reached out "Ty…"

"We'll talk about this later," Tyra sighed, running a hand through her hair.

He closed his eyes for a moment "Be careful, alright? Don't let them catch you…"

"I won't," Tyra promised, squeezing his arm before following Martha out of the door "So, where did you see them last?"

Martha frowned "You're really going after them?"

"Yup," Tyra nodded "So… Where?" Martha pointed her in a direction opposite of where they had been going in "Thanks."

* * *

Tyra sped up as soon as she was sure that Martha was far enough away, running through the corridors toward the loud footsteps that she could hear. She slowed down as soon as they came into view, mingling around with the Humans. She was curious whether she would be classed as Human or not… If they suspected her, she could just run away and stay away from them, after all. What was the harm?

One of the Judoon reached out for her, pressing her against the wall to scan her. The lead Judoon looked down at the device for one tense moment before nodding "Human."

Tyra let out a small sigh before allowing them to pass. She faded around a corner before speeding back up again, burring around the Judoon, making a couple of them stumble as she pushed them to the side "Halt," the leader demanded, his eyes darting around to find out what was causing this "Show yourself and face justice."

"Come and get me, then," Tyra taunted, not stopping long enough for them to catch sight of her. She heard their footsteps running after her as she lead them through several corridors before quickly changing directions on them, running back to where the Doctor was.

"I've restored the back-up," he exclaimed as soon as she was within hearing distance.

Martha panted "I found her."

"You did what?" the Doctor demanded, his eyes wide "Dammit… Where's Tyra?"

"I'm here," she spoke up, stepping closer "I tried to divert them but for space rhinos, they're surprisingly clever. I managed to get some of them to follow me to the other side of the hospital but I didn't wait to see how many of them were still around."

Just then, two motorcycle men broke down the door at the end of the corridor "Run," the Doctor exclaimed as the three of them ran down the stairs. A couple of Judoon came out of the door, so the Doctor changed direction, pulling the two girls to another floor "Not enough, apparently."

"Well, sorry?" Tyra shrugged, glancing over her shoulder "What's up with them?"

"Not now," the Doctor muttered, running through the doors of radiology. He sonicked the lock before turning to Tyra and Martha "When I say now, press the button."

Martha's eyes widened "I don't know which one."

"Aren't you a medical student?" Tyra tilted her head.

"Not in radiology," she pointed out.

Tyra shrugged "Fair enough."

The Doctor barely turned his head "Just find out, will you?" He was messing with the x-ray machine while Martha got out the Operator's Manual from the shelf, leafing through it. The motorcycle man outside was bettering at the door, trying to take it off its hinges "Now!"

Martha hit a random button, causing the black-clad man to freeze before falling face down to the ground "What did you do?" she breathed.

"Increased the radiation by five thousand percent," the Doctor shrugged "Killed him dead."

"But… isn't that going to kill you?" Martha asked.

The Doctor snorted "Nah. It's only roentgen radiation. We used to play with roentgen bricks in the nursery. It's safe for the two of you to come out. I've absorbed it all." He started hopping in place, shaking different body parts "All I need to do is expel it. If I concentrate I can shake the radiation out of my body and into one spot. It's in my left shoe." He was still hopping, shaking his leg violently "Here we go, here we go. Easy does it. Out, out, out, out, out. Out, out. Ah, ah, ah, ah! It is, it is, it is… It is hot. Hold on." After a lot of jigging about, the Doctor took off his shoe and threw it into the bin "Done."

"I think this has to be the weirdest thing you ever did…" Tyra gaped "And you've done a lot of weird crap over the past two years."

Martha was shaking her head "You're completely mad."

"You're right," the Doctor acknowledged "I look daft with one shoe…" He got rid of the other one too and wiggled his toes "Barefoot on the moon."

"Oh, God," Tyra muttered, hiding her face in her hands.

Martha's eyes wandered to the thing on the floor "So what is that thing? And where is it from? The planet Zovirax?"

"It's just a slab," the Doctor waved off "They're called Slabs. Basic slave drones. See? Solid leather all the way through. Someone has got one hell of a fetish."

"But it was that woman," Martha exclaimed "Miss Finnegan. It was working for her, just like a servant."

The Doctor turned to the machine, pulling out the remains of his sonic from the x-ray machine. It was completely fried "My sonic screwdriver…"

"She was one of the patients but…"

"Oh, no. My sonic screwdriver," the Doctor cut her off, mournfully.

Martha shot him an annoyed look "She had a straw like some kind of vampire." She frowned when the Doctor didn't react "Doctor?"

"A straw?" Tyra repeated incredulously "What the…? That's an insult to all vampires." She looked over at the Doctor and snatched the broken sonic from his hands "Pay attention, will you?"

"Sorry," he grimaced apologetically "You called me Doctor."

Martha threw her hands up in exasperation "Anyway? Miss Finnegan is the alien. She was drinking Mister Stoker's blood."

"Funny time to take a snack," the Doctor blinked "You'd think she's be hiding." He glanced over at Tyra "Then again…"

"Hey," Tyra crossed her arms with a huff "As long as she's not a vampire. I mean… What kind of self-respecting vampire uses a straw?"

The Doctor looked at her thoughtfully "Unless… Wait a minute. Yes! Shape-changed. Internal shape-changer. She wasn't drinking blood, she was assimilating it." He nodded "If she can assimilate Mister Stoker's blood, mimic the biology, she'll register as Human. We've got to find her and show the Judoon. Come on." A few corridors down, the Doctor pulled both Martha and Tyra behind a water dispenser, waiting for another of the Slabs to pass by "That's the thing about Slabs," he grumbled "They always travel in pairs."

"What about you?" Martha asked.

The Doctor blinked "What about me what?"

"Haven't the two of you got back-up? You must have a team or something, right?"

"Oh. Humans," the Doctor rolled his eyes "We're stuck on the moon running out of air with Judoon and a blood-sucking criminal, you're asking personal questions?"

Martha snorted "I like that," she commented "I'm still not convinced you're an alien."

"Non-Human," the Judoon that had scanned Tyra earlier grunted after scanning the Doctor.

"Oh, my God," Martha gasped "You really are."

The Doctor groaned "And again." He whirled around, starting to run around the corner with Martha and Tyra hot on his heels. They ducked around the corner, trying to avoid the Judoon firing their weapons. The Doctor waved them into the staircase before guiding them upstairs.

* * *

In the corridor, people were starting to slump to the ground "They've done this floor. Come on. The Judoon are logical and just a little bit thick. They won't go back to check a floor they've already checked. If we're lucky."

Martha knelt down next to the medical student they had left behind earlier "How much oxygen is there?"

"Not enough for all these people," she shook her head, running her hand through the patient's hair "We're going to run out."

The Doctor watched as Martha rejoined them "How are you feeling?" he questioned "Are you alright?"

"I'm running on adrenaline," Martha admitted with a small grin.

Tyra nodded sagely "That's what usually happens around him," she pointed "That and chaos and mayhem."

"I can imagine," Martha mumbled "What about the Judoon? Won't they run out of air?"

The Doctor shook his head "Nah, great big lung reserves. It won't slow them down. Where's Mister Stoker's office?"

"It's this way," Martha sighed, pushing past the Doctor. They hurried back to where Tyra and Martha had parted earlier, bursting into the empty office "She's gone. She was here."

Tyra closed her eyes, taking a breath "There's no blood left. He's drained dry," she mumbled, staring at the body.

"I was right then," the Doctor sighed "She's a plasmavore."

"What's she doing on Earth?"

The Doctor shrugged "Hiding. On the run. Like Ronald Biggs in Rio de Janeiro. What's she doing now?" He tilted his head "She's still not safe. The Judoon could execute us all. Come on."

"Wait a minute," Martha stopped him. She knelt down next to the body and closed Stoker's eyes.

* * *

The Doctor stopped in the middle of a corridor and started pacing up and down "Think, think, think. If I was a plasmavore surrounded by police, what would I do?" He froze, staring at the sign to the MRI "Ah. She's as clever as me. Well, almost."

"Wow," Tyra whistled lowly "What a compliment."

"What are you then?" Martha raised her eyebrow "Comic relief?"

Tyra turned to glare at her and went to say something when a crash sounded a little bit down the corridor and people started screaming. The Doctor put his hand on Tyra's shoulder "Tyra, Martha, stay here. I need time. You've got to hold them up." He looked down at Tyra "I… I need you to stay out of sight. I'm not sure if you're going to register as Human on their scans…"

"I do," Tyra shrugged.

The Doctor froze, his hand tightening "You let them… Oh, who am I kidding, of course, you did."

Tyra grinned "I was curious."

"Alright," he sighed before surging forward, pulling her into a long, hard kiss "This should keep them busy for a few minutes…"

Martha looked at a shell-shocked Tyra "Are you two together?"

"No," Tyra shook her head "I… Not really. I don't know. It's nothing."

"That was nothing?" Martha snorted.

Tyra sighed "I just… I don't know, okay? I would appreciate to not talk about my non-existent love life with a stranger."

"Find the non-Human. Execute," the leader of the Judoon called out and Tyra sighed in relief. Saved by the bell.

Martha looked over at Tyra nervously before she stepped into the rhino's way "Now listen, I know who you're looking for. She's this woman. She calls herself Florence."

The Judoon scanned Martha "Human." He then turned to Tyra, who had rubbed off the cross just as soon as they had marked her as a Human, and scanned her again "Human. Wait. Non-Human traits suspected. Non-Human element confirmed. Authorise full scan." Tyra was slammed against the wall, harder than before and grimaced lightly "What are you? What are you?"

Tyra's eyes trailed to Martha who was looking at her with wide eyes and just shrugged, trying to reassure the other girl that everything was going to be alright. Well, at least she hoped that everything would be fine.

"Confirm Human. Traces of facial contact with non-Human," the Judoon nodded "Continued the search." He handed Tyra a booklet written in alien. She squinted at the writing and shrugged "You will need this."

"Compensation?" she asked, guessing what this was about.

The Judoon nodded "Correct."

They walked off and Tyra went to stand next to Martha "'Facial contact with non-Human'. Well, I guess that's one way to describe it."

Martha snorted out a laugh before looking after the Judoon who were walking toward the MRI room, the Doctor had disappeared into "Should we follow them?"

"Definitely," Tyra nodded "Who knows what kind of trouble the Doctor got himself into?" The two of them continued after the Judoon through the corridors to the MRI room. As soon as they were close to the door, Tyra could smell the Doctor's blood.

The Judoon burst in "_Now, see what you've done,_" Mrs Finnegan exclaimed, her voice rising "_This poor man just died of fright._"

"_Scan him,_" the Judoon murmured "_Confirmation. Deceased._"

Tyra closed her eyes, listening closely for any sort of heartbeat coming from the Doctor. There was one. Barely there and skipping several beats but it was still there.

She was about to rush into the room when Martha pushed past her "No, he can't be. Let me through. Let me see him."

"Stop," the Judoon demanded as Tyra slipped in, kneeling down next to the Doctor, her hand resting between his hearts. She slipped around his head and propped him up against her. One quick bite to her wrist later, she was making sure that the Doctor would swallow at least some of it. Since his heartbeat had been getting stronger as she knelt down, she wouldn't have to worry about him possibly turning into a vampire "Case closed."

Martha glared at the Judoon "But it was her. She killed him. She did it. She murdered him."

"Judoon have no authority over Human crime," the leader told her.

"But she's not Human," Martha gritted out, looking over at Tyra in confusion. She was whispering to the Doctor whose eyes were fluttering a little "Why aren't you doing anything?"

The Plasmavore smirked at Martha "Oh, but I am Human. I've been catalogued." She held her hand up in victory.

Tyra sighed, silently begging Martha to come to a conclusion within the next minute, otherwise, she would have to interfere. This was her test and Tyra didn't want to ruin it "But she's not," Martha huffed "She assimi… Wait a minute." A smug grin flitted across her face "You drank his blood? The Doctor's blood?" Martha ripped one of the scanners out of the Judoon's hands, pointing it at the Plasmavore.

"Oh, I don't mind," she shrugged "Scan all you like."

"Non-Human," the Judoon leader announced.

The Plasmavore's face fell "But… what?"

"Confirm analysis."

"Oh, but it's a mistake, surely," Miss Finnegan stuttered "I'm Human. I'm as Human as they come."

Martha stared at her "He sacrificed himself so they'd find you."

"Confirm," the Judoon nodded "Plasmavore, charged with the crime of murdering the child princess of Patrival Regency Nine."

The Plasmavore sneered "Well, she deserved it. Those pink cheeks and those blonde curls and that simpering voice. She was begging for the bite of a Plasmavore."

The Judoon tilted his head "Then you confess?"

"Confess?" the Plasmavore laughed "I'm proud of it." She ducked behind the second Slab "Slab, stop them."

Before the Slab could move, the Judoon had fried it "Verdict, guilty. Sentence, execution."

The Plasmavore ducked behind the screen, plugging in the MRI scanner. As soon as she did, the Magnetic Overload sign came on "Enjoy your victory, Judoon, because you're going to burn with me. Burn in hell." Four Judoon all fired at the woman through the screen, incinerating the Plasmavore.

"Case closed," the Judoon nodded in satisfaction.

Martha turned to them "But what did she mean, burn with me? The scanner shouldn't be doing that. She's done something."

"Scans detect lethal acceleration of mono-magnetic pulse," they said.

"Well, do something," Martha shouted while she fell down next to the Doctor, pressing a hand to his chest.

He let out a small groan as the Judoon turned around as one "Our jurisdiction had ended. Judoon will evacuate. All units withdraw."

They stomped out and Martha was about to follow them when the Doctor let out another groan "Oh, this is so much worse than a hangover," he grumbled.

"You don't even drink," Tyra pointed out, helping him sit up.

The Doctor raised his hand to his head before he smacked his lips "Did you…?"

"You're alive," Tyra shrugged "I wasn't going to try CPR… You know why."

"Thank you," he murmured, leaning his head against her shoulder for a moment.

Martha let out a small gasp as she sank to the ground "The scanner," she panted "She did something…"

"Soddit," the Doctor cursed as Tyra started slumping against him as well. He tried to stand but gave up quickly, crawling toward the scanner controls. His gaze fell onto the cables that had been plugged together. As soon as he separated them, the scanner turned off.

With much difficulty, he fought to get to his feet, looking at the two unconscious girls on the floor "Come on," he mumbled, picking up Martha first. He slowly carried her to the ward, depositing her on the bed he had occupied before trudging back to get Tyra. It was slightly disconcerting how much lighter Tyra was compared to Martha. Sure, he had carried her before but back then he didn't have a direct comparison "Come on," he breathed, staring out of the window at the Judoon ships that were leaving "Come on, please. Come on, Judoon, reverse it."

As soon as those words had left his mouth, it started raining again "It's raining, Ty," he whispered into the Original's ear, pressing a small kiss to her forehead "It's raining on the moon."

One crash of thunder and a big flash later, the hospital was back where it was supposed to be. He sank to the ground, cradling Tyra in his arms. All around them, the unconscious people were starting to breathe easier but none of them was awake yet.

It took another five minutes for Tyra to stir. She groaned, causing the Doctor to look down "You awake?"

"My head," she groaned, hiding her face in the Doctor's shoulder. When she spoke again, her voice was muffled by his suit jacket "At least you didn't ask whether I was okay this time."

The Doctor shook his head with a grin before prodding her side "Come on. Let's get you back to the Tardis before we get held hostage by the police."

"Kay," Tyra mumbled, leaning onto the Doctor a little as her head swam.

* * *

"So, what do you think?" the Doctor asked, sitting down next to Tyra.

She tilted her head "About… what?"

"Martha Jones," he elaborated.

"You're thinking about taking her along, aren't you?" Tyra hummed.

The Doctor bit his lip "Yeah. Maybe a trip or two… What do you think?"

Tyra raised her shoulders in a shrug "Your Tardis," she pointed out "Your choice."

"But you're here too," the Doctor murmured "And I want you to agree before I take someone along."

"In that case. I don't mind… You can ask her while I go and change?" She looked down at her clothes "I, sadly, can't get away with wearing the same clothes for more than a day…"

The Doctor snorted, ruffling her hair "Alright, then. Just come back to the console room when you're done."

"I will."

* * *

It had taken her a little bit but when Tyra stepped into the hallway leading to the console room, she could hear Martha's voice "But is there a crew?" Martha asked "Like a navigator and stuff? Where is everyone?"

"Just Ty and me," the Doctor replied.

"Just the two of you?"

The Doctor messed around with the console "Well, sometimes I have guests… I mean some friends, travelling alongside like Tyra. I had… There was recently, a friend of ours. Rose, her name was." He swallowed "Rose. And… anyway."

"Where is she now?" Martha asked as Tyra leaned against the wall just out of sight, just listening to what they were saying.

"With her family," the Doctor explained "Happy. She's fine. She's…" He looked up "Not that you're replacing her."

Martha raised her eyebrows "Never said I was."

The Doctor pointed at her "Just one trip to say thanks… You get one trip, then back home. I'd rather be on my own."

"With Tyra," Martha added and leaned closer to the Doctor "You're the one who kissed her."

Tyra rolled her eyes and stepped out of her hiding place, swinging herself over the railing to jump down to the grating "I see you found her, then?"

"Yup," the Doctor nodded, relief shining in his eyes "Now that you're back here… Close down the gravitic anomaliser, fire up the hemlic regulator. And finally,…" He threw a switch with a huge grin "The hand break. Ready?"

Martha shook her head with wide eyes. She had stepped back as soon as Tyra had entered "No."

"Off we go." The Tardis materialised with a big jolt, causing the trio to hold on for dear life. Somehow whenever he was trying to show off, his driving got worse if that was actually possible.

"Blimey," Martha breathed, her knuckles turning white "It's a bit bumpy."

The Doctor reached out his hand "Welcome aboard, Miss Jones."

"It's my pleasure, Mister Smith," Martha shot back with a big smile.


	18. Shakespeare Code

Tyra was leaning against the console next to the Doctor, Martha hanging on for dear life. After almost two years on the Tardis, she had gotten used to the bucking and the shaking for the most part. It had been a bit harsher when they took off but now the Tardis had somewhat stabilized. Enough for Tyra not to need any support in any case.

Martha looked at the Doctor "But how do you travel in time? What makes it go?"

"Oh, let's take the fun and mystery out of everything," the Doctor sighed in annoyance "Martha, you don't want to know. It just does. Hold on tight." The Tardis came to a halt and Martha fell to the ground, while Tyra just wobbled dangerously.

"Blimey," she gasped "Do you have to pass a test to fly this thing?"

The Doctor nodded "Yes, and I failed it. Now, make the most of it. I promised you one trip and one trip only. Outside this door, brave new world."

Tyra grinned excitedly "You're kidding. Are we really seeing him?" The Doctor had just quoted Shakespeare's Tempest. She had been on his case for ages to go see the Bard since she had been locked in a coffin during those years. Now he finally brought her here. Now, the only thing that was missing was Barcelona.

"Yup," he smiled and Tyra threw her arms around him happily.

"Where are we?" Martha questioned confused.

The Doctor gestured to the doors "Take a look. After you."

"Oh, you are kidding me," Martha exclaimed, head whipping from side to side to take everything in as best as she could "You are so kidding me. Oh, my God. We did it. We travelled in time. Where are we? No, sorry. I got to get used to this whole new language. When are we?"

The Doctor quickly pulled her back, shielding Tyra at the same time "Mind out."

A man emptied his slop bucket from an upstairs window "Gardez l'eau."

"Somewhere before the invention of the toilet," the Doctor sighed "Sorry about that."

Tyra held up her hands "Don't look at me. I've lived through this. It's nothing I'm not used to."

Martha shrugged "I've seen worse. I've worked the late-night shift A+E. But are we safe? I mean, can we move around and stuff?"

"Of course, we can. Why would you ask that?"

"It's like in the films. You step on a butterfly, you change the future of the human race," Martha explained.

The Doctor stopped, blinking at her weirdly "Tell you what then, don't step on any butterflies. What have butterflies ever done to you?"

"What if, I don't know, what if I kill my grandfather?" Martha demanded.

Tyra coughed into her hand, trying desperately to hide her amusement. The Doctor looked down at Tyra with a smile before turning back to Martha "Are you planning to?"

"No?" Martha murmured.

The Doctor shrugged "Well, then."

"And this is London?" she questioned.

"I think so," the Doctor nodded "Round about 1599. Come on."

The three of them ran along from the south end of old London Bridge past what would become Southwark Cathedral. That gave them the perfect view of the… Tyra's head whipped to face the Doctor "You made it. You actually got the right year." She bounced on the balls of her feet for a moment "I really want to see Shakespeare… Was in a coffin," she mumbled under her breath.

"Oh, yes," the Doctor grinned, holding out his arm to Tyra "Miss Mikaelson, Miss Jones, will you accompany me to the theatre?"

"Mister Smith, I will," Martha proclaimed, while Tyra just took his arm with a smile.

They walked over to the Globe Theatre "When you get home, you can tell everyone you've seen Shakespeare."

"Then I could get sanctioned," Martha pointed out sarcastically.

* * *

About an hour or so later, the performance had just finished and the audience was applauding the actors. Tyra was standing in front of the Doctor, while they watched the play from the pit like everyone else "That's amazing," Martha smiled "Just amazing. It's worth putting up with the smell. And those are men dressed as women, yeah?"

"London never changes," the Doctor grinned, looking down at Tyra who just shrugged.

Martha looked over the heads of the crowd "Where's Shakespeare? I want to see Shakespeare. Author! Author!" She stopped and turned to the Doctor and Tyra sheepishly "Do people shout that? Do they shout Author?"

"Author! Author," a man started and soon the crowd were all shouting for Shakespeare.

Tyra snorted "Well, now they do."

The Bard himself jumped out from behind the door to rapturous applause. Martha blinked in surprise "He's a bit different from his portraits."

"Genius," the Doctor shook his head "He's a genius. The genius. The most Human Human there's ever been. Now we're going to hear him speak. Always he chooses the best words. New, beautiful, brilliant words."

"Ah, shut your big fat mouths," Shakespeare shouted at that moment.

The Doctor's shoulders slumped "Oh, well." Tyra laughed at his face, patting his shoulder reassuringly. For some reason, it didn't surprise her that Shakespeare would go for comedy over deep meaning. In his words right now, that was.

"You should never meet your heroes," Martha pointed out with a grin.

"You've got excellent taste," the Bard nodded "I'll give you that. Oh, that's a wig." He pointed at a person in the front of the crowd "I know what you're all saying. Loves Labour's Lost, that's a funny ending, isn't it? It just stops. Will the boys get the girls? Well, don't get your hose in a tangle, you'll find out soon. Yeah, yeah. All in good time. You don't rush a genius." Suddenly, the man went rigid and his face blanked "When? Tomorrow night. The première of my brand-new play. A sequel, no less, and I call it Loves Labour's Won."

Tyra inhaled sharply and turned to look up at the Doctor "Loves Labour's Won… That's the lost play, Doctor. I have a bad feeling about this."

"So do I, Ty. So do I," he murmured and herded Martha and her out of the theatre.

"I'm not an expert," Martha pointed out when they were almost back on the street "But I've never heard of Loves Labour's Won."

The Doctor sighed, running a hand through his unruly hair "Exactly. The lost play. It doesn't exist, only in rumours. It's mentioned in lists of his plays but never ever turns up. And no one knows why."

"Haven't you got a mini-disc or something? We can tape it," Martha remarked "We can flog it. Sell it when we get home and make a mint." The Doctor glared at her silently, making Martha cringe "That would be bad."

The Doctor nodded "Yeah."

"Well, how come it disappeared in the first place?" Martha questioned.

Tyra looked back at the Globe "No one knows. Can we stay? This is something I'd really love to see."

The Doctor debated for a moment "Well, I was just going to give Martha a quick little trip in the Tardis but I suppose we could stay a bit longer."

"Yes," Tyra cheered, grabbing the Doctor's hand "Come on."

"Well, you seem happy," the Doctor murmured.

She raised one shoulder in a shrug "I always am when we go somewhere I haven't been yet. I love seeing what I missed in the past."

Martha frowned in confusion "What are you talking about? 'What you missed'?"

"It doesn't matter," Tyra waved off, stopping in front of the Elephant when the Doctor pulled at her hand "He's in there?"

"Yup." He pulled us into the tavern and up the stairs when Tyra pointed out that Shakespeare was in one of the rooms upstairs "Hello," he grinned, peaking into the doorway "Excuse me, not interrupting, am I? Mister Shakespeare, isn't it?"

Shakespeare groaned "Oh, no. No, no, no. Who let you in? No autographs," he rambled "No, you can't have yourself sketched with me. And please don't ask where I get my ideas from. Thanks for the interest. Now be a good boy and shove…" He stopped when his gaze fell on Martha and Tyra's partially hidden form "Hey, nonny nonny. Sit right down here next to me."

It was only when the Doctor moved that Tyra noticed a familiar figure sitting between Shakespeare and one of his actors "Kol?" she breathed, staring at her brother with wide eyes. She hadn't even known that her brother was awake or met Shakespeare. She always thought that he was daggered as well. Apparently, she had been wrong.

His head snapped to her "Ty?"

"Kol," Tyra smiled, rushing over to him. He caught her easily and pulled her into a crushing hug "Missed you," she breathed into his ear.

When he let her go, Tyra saw that they held the room's attention. The actors and the two women from before were gone, leaving only Shakespeare, the Doctor, Martha, Kol and Tyra "How do you know someone from 1599," Martha frowned, staring at Tyra weirdly.

Tyra bit her lip "Er… Does it matter?"

"Ashamed of me, darling sister?" Kol teased, his arms still wrapped around her shoulders from behind.

Tyra smirked, leaning her head against his chest to look up at him – or rather at his chin "Well, one can hardly be proud of you, brother dearest."

"Good to see you're still as cheeky as ever," he laughed, ruffling her hair "When did Nik let you go?"

Her smirk fell as she glanced at the Doctor nervously "That… is a long story. Can I – Can I tell him?" The last part was aimed at the Doctor.

The Doctor nodded "Sure. If that's what you want."

"Tell me what?" Kol frowned "Who is that and why are you with him?"

"**Can we talk in private?**" Tyra asked in their mother tongue. It had been a long time since she had last spoken it but it felt nice. When she was travelling with Kol a few centuries ago, they had spoken it often. It was something that reminded them of where they came from, of when they were Human. The two of them were the only two of all their siblings to still speak it occasionally. The others had long since decided to forget their roots.

Kol stared at Tyra for a moment "**Alright. But you'll tell me?**"

"**I promise. No matter how complicated it actually is.**"

Kol lead her to a room across from the one Shakespeare was in and closed the door behind him "**So? How did you get away from Nik?**"

"**That's when it gets complicated.**" Tyra shifted around on the bed in Kol's room "**Technically, I'm still in a coffin somewhere…**" At her brother's confused look, she shrugged "**The man you just met – the Doctor – he… I met him in 2005.**"

"**What?**"

"**See? Complicated,**" Tyra winced, scratching the back of her head "**It's… The Doctor is an alien and he has this machine called the Tardis. It allows us to go anywhere, anytime.**"

Kol raised an eyebrow at her in disbelief "**Are you serious?**"

"**Look, I know you don't believe me but you've seen my clothes and you've seen Martha's… Just listen to the Doctor's heartbeat. He has two hearts,**" she trailed off, not sure if there was anything else she could say to convince him. Hell, if she hadn't been there, she probably wouldn't believe it either "**You know what? Just… forget about…**"

Tyra was cut off by a man's scream from the street, quickly followed by a moment "Help me."

"Really? Again?" she rolled her eyes, running out of the room with Kol following closely behind her "I swear, we can barely go a day without anything happening…" In the courtyard, a man was staggering around, spewing huge amounts of water as Tyra joined Martha and the Doctor "Who is that?"

"It's that Lynley bloke," Martha murmured, staring at the man in horror.

Tyra tilted her head "And who is that Lynley bloke?"

"He's the official censor," Kol murmured into her ear "Every new script goes through him."

The Doctor frowned "What's wrong with him? Leave it to me. I'm a doctor."

He ran forward with Martha hot on his heels "So am I, near enough." As suddenly as this had all begun, it stopped and Lynley collapsed "Got to get the heart going. Mister Lynley, come on. Can you hear me? You're going to be alright." Martha started to clear the dead man's airways, only to get water gushing out.

"**Correct me if I'm wrong,**" Kol whispered into her ear "**But that looked suspiciously like magic.**"

Tyra ran a hand through her hair "**On one hand, yeah. But then again… Even the voodoo the witches can do, it isn't this sophisticated. Not yet at least.**"

"**True,**" he murmured, nodding his head thoughtfully "**But… What else could it be?**" Tyra shot him a look that practically screamed 'We just talked about it' "**Alright, alright. I'll believe you for now, sister. After all... We're vampires who were witches. We have seen weirder things than aliens, right?**" Kol murmured when they had walked over to Lynley's body. They had seen enough death to be at least somewhat knowledgeable in that area.

She hugged his arm and squeaked when he picked her up, twirling Tyra around for a moment "**Thank you, thank you, thank you,**" Tyra laughed

"**Speaking of aliens. What's the weirdest thing you've seen so far?**" Kol asked her.

Tyra stopped for a moment and hummed "**Hm. That's difficult... Let me think. Well, there was the Devil... And I was on a parallel Earth once where all of you were human and I didn't exist and Henrik was still alive. I'd have to tell you about the rest some other time. When you'd understand the references and the science of it.**"

"**The what?**" Kol snorted.

"**Devil,**" she repeated "**Well, it wasn't as much the Devil as it was… a Beast, a Demon that was imprisoned in the centre of a planet called Krop Tor. The thing claimed to be the Devil. It was fascinating really… Krop Tor was in orbit around a black hole which shouldn't be possible at all.**" At Kol's blank look, she groaned "**You know what? Never mind. You'll understand that someday.**"

Martha blinked at Tyra in confusion, narrowing her eyes "Wait a moment. I can't understand what you're saying…" She turned back to the Doctor "I thought the Tardis translates anything?"

"She should," the Doctor murmured, staring at Tyra with a raised eyebrow. Of course, he would have still understood what Kol and she were saying. While she hadn't told him about witches before, Tyra knew that the Doctor was aware that they were real. Werewolves more so than witches but he definitely knew about those. It was only vampires that didn't really care too much and relied heavily on compulsion to keep their secret.

Tyra's lips twitched "I might have asked her to keep my mother tongue from being translated. Well, only if we don't end up anywhere we're going to have to speak it."

"You –" the Doctor pointed to her accusingly "You turned my Tardis against me?"

"It's not my fault she likes me better," Tyra smirked "Maybe she would like you more if you didn't hit her with a hammer all the time."

Kol frowned down at his little sister "What the hell are you talking about?"

"A sentient ship that travels through time and space," Tyra explained under her breath, aware that there were humans all around them.

The Doctor shook his head and turned to the owner of the Elephant Inn "Good mistress, this poor fellow has died from a sudden imbalance of the humours. A natural if unfortunate demise. Call a constable and have him taken away."

Dolly nodded "Yes, sir."

The maid from earlier stopped Dolly from leaving "I'll do it, ma'am." With that, she left.

"Why are you telling him that?" Martha frowned, looking at the Doctor in confusion.

The Doctor shrugged, glancing at Shakespeare who had been standing a little to the side "This lot still have got one foot in the Dark Ages. If I tell them the truth, they'll panic and think it was witchcraft."

"Okay," Martha shrugged "What was it then?"

"Witchcraft."

Tyra scoffed "That's not witchcraft," she mumbled, sounding slightly annoyed.

Kol shrugged "I mean, it still could be, right?"

"But our kind of magic would have a different aura," Tyra pointed out "We would be able to tell." As vampires Kol and Tyra might not be able to use magic anymore, they still spent enough time around them to know when someone was using it nearby. The sensitivity to magic was still there for the most part even if it wasn't always reliable. That was also what helped Tyra when she had been trying to find some members for the Alpha Coven. If a witch used their magic anywhere nearby, Tyra normally would have been able to tell. She wasn't sure whether all former witches-warlocks had that ability but… It was a possibility._  
_

* * *

As soon as they reached Shakespeare's room, the owner of the Inn turned to the Doctor "I got you a room, Sir Doctor. You and Miss Jones are just across the landing. I assumed Lady Mikaelson would stay with her brother?"

Tyra looked from the Doctor to Kol and back before she shrugged "I… I guess so?"

"I don't mind either way," the Doctor told her.

Shakespeare, meanwhile, had sunken down behind his desk, hiding his face in his hands "Poor Lynley. So many strange events. Not least of all, this land of Freedonia where a woman can be a doctor?"

"Where a woman can do what she likes," Martha corrected.

"And you, Sir Doctor," the Bard murmured, turning to face the Doctor "How can a man so young have eyes so old?"

The Doctor looked at the man seriously "I do a lot of reading."

"A trite reply," Shakespeare complimented "Yeah, that's what I'd do. And you?" He turned his head back to Martha "You look at him like you're surprised he exists. He's as much of a puzzle to you as he is to me."

Martha blushed, staring at everything but the Doctor or Tyra "I think we should say goodnight." With that said, she walked out.

"Then there's you… and your brother," the author murmured, looking at Tyra "There is something about you."

"Maybe there is maybe there isn't," she shrugged dismissively.

"I must work," the playwright waved his hand "I have a play to complete. But I'll get my answers tomorrow, Doctor, and I'll discover more about you and why this constant performance of yours."

"All the world's a stage," the Doctor threw out carelessly.

Shakespeare raised his eyebrow "Hmm. I might use that. Goodnight, Doctor."

"Nighty night, Shakespeare," the Doctor said before turning. He threw Tyra a silent look that told her to come to their room before retiring.

Tyra was about to follow him when Kol grabbed her arm "I'll be right there, Kol. I just need to talk to the Doctor and Martha for a moment."

"If you're sure," Kol sighed, pressing a kiss to her forehead before opening the door to his room "Just come in when you're done."

Tyra rolled her eyes "Like you won't be listening in…"

"Hush, brat," Kol huffed, waving her off. Tyra grinned at him cheekily before slipping into the room Martha and the Doctor were in.

"So, magic and stuff," Martha licked her lips uncomfortably "That's a surprise. It's all a little bit Harry Potter."

The Doctor grinned from the bed "Wait till you read book seven. Oh, I cried."

"But is it real, though?" Martha questioned "I mean, witches, black magic and all that?"

"Course it is," Tyra cut in, nudging the Doctor's head up to sit on the head of the bed "This isn't magic magic though."

Martha raised her eyebrow "Magic magic?" She shook her head "Magic, aliens… I've only just started to believe in time travel. What else is out there?"

"Vampires," Tyra shrugged "Werewolves… There's more but I'm guessing those are the main species on Earth along with humans."

"Vampires?" Martha snorted "You mean like Miss Finnegan?"

Tyra hissed in agitation "That again. I'm talking fangs, not straws."

The Doctor placed his head on her lap, his neck muscles protesting against him trying to hold his head up for this long "This might look like witchcraft but it isn't." He glanced up at Martha who was watching them with slightly narrowed eyes "Are you going to stand there all night?"

"Budge up a bit, then," she shot back before closing her eyes for a moment "Sorry, there's not much room…"

"There's such a thing as psychic energy," the Doctor muttered, while Tyra ran her hand through his hair absent-mindedly "But a human couldn't channel it like that."

Tyra nodded "Not even the witches are able to do something quite as complex as this. I mean, there's Voodoo but… At this time, it wasn't as much of a trend as in the early 21st century."

The Doctor hummed "They'd need a generator the size of Taunton and I think we'd have spotted that. No… I'm missing something." He turned to his side, looking at Martha with his head still resting on Tyra's upper thigh "Something really close, staring me right in the eyes and I can't see it. Rose'd know… A friend of ours, Rose."

Tyra sighed a little as he mentioned Rose and closed her eyes. Of course, he missed her… There was nothing she could say or do against it and she shouldn't mind. Rose had been around for as long as she had "I think Kol is waiting for me. Can you let me get up?" The Doctor shifted a little, moving closer to Martha by accident "Thanks." Tyra ruffled his hair before leaving the room as quickly as she could.

Once outside, she sank to the ground, burying her face in her hands. Why did she keep reacting like this? It's like she was jealous and she didn't like it. The Doctor had feelings for her, so there was no need for her to get jealous over someone else or even Rose. Especially since she had always been closer to the Doctor than Rose.

Tyra looked up when footsteps came up the stairs and smiled lightly when Dolly came into view "Lady Tyra… Is everything alright?" the woman asked when her gaze caught hers.

"Yes, yes," she murmured, getting up from the floor "Have a good night." She opened Kol's door and quickly closed it behind her.

"You look like someone killed your favourite toy," Kol remarked, looking up from the grimoire he had on his lap.

Tyra huffed and crawled over to him, snuggling into his side comfortably "I missed you, Kol."

"I'm here now, Ty," he murmured, wrapping his arms around her tightly "I have a question though. Who is Rose?"

"So, you did eavesdrop," Tyra snorted, not remotely surprised "She travelled with the Doctor. I think we actually met him around the same time. She recently got… lost."

Kol tilted his head "Lost…? Lost how?"

"I didn't kill her if that's what you're asking," she mumbled "She's trapped in the parallel Earth that… The one where you guys were all human."

"And how –" The rest of his question was cut off by a shrill scream. Kol raised his eyebrow "Again?"

Tyra shrugged, reluctantly letting go of him to run out of the door "Apparently."

In Shakespeare's room, the Doctor was kneeling next to Dolly "Her heart gave out," he blinked owlishly "She died of fright."

"Doctor?" Martha called from the window, staring out in shock.

The Doctor jumped up "What did you see?"

"A witch."

* * *

An hour or two later, Tyra was curled up on Kol's lap, her head resting on his shoulder comfortably. By then, the constables had collected Dolly's body and taken her away. Will let out a shaky sigh "Oh, sweet Dolly Bailey. She sat out three bouts of the plague in this place when we all ran like rats. But what could have scared her so? She had such enormous spirit."

The Doctor stared at the wall "Rage, rage against the dying of the light."

"I might use that," Will nodded in appreciation.

"You can't," the Doctor shrugged "It's someone else's."

"But the thing is," Martha spoke up suddenly, causing Tyra to raise her head for a moment "Lynley drowned on dry land, Dolly died of fright and they were both connected to you."

Will frowned at her "You're accusing me?"

"That's not what she's saying," Tyra pointed out, hiding a yawn behind her hand. The more or less sleepless nights were slowly catching up with her. Well, either that or Kol was too comfortable. Maybe both.

"Yeah," Martha nodded "I saw a witch, big as you like, flying, cackling away and you've written about witches."

Kol tilted his head "He has?"

"I have?" Will asked at the same time "When was that?"

The Doctor winced "Not… Not quite yet."

"Hey, didn't that guy speak about witches?" Kol asked "The one… Erm…"

"Peter Streete," Shakespeare nodded in agreement.

Martha blinked "Who's Peter Streete?"

"Our builder," Will explained "He sketched the plans to the Globe."

The Doctor shot up from his chair "The architect. Hold on… The architect! The architect. The Globe. Come on."

Tyra yelped when Kol stood up, keeping her in his arms "Kol," she exclaimed "Put me down."

"If you insist," he shrugged, dropping her to the ground unceremoniously.

She glared up at him and was about to get up and charge at him when Will held out his hand for Tyra to take "Thanks," she smiled lightly, blushing when Will leaned down to press a small kiss to her hand. As soon as he let go of me, Tyra whirled around to face Kol "You're dead, brother."

"Go ahead," Kol goaded, spreading his arms. He ducked to the side when Tyra charged at him "Is that all you got?"

The Doctor cleared his throat "Are you two done?"

"Not quite yet," Tyra mumbled and quickly darted around Kol, bringing him to his knees, an arm around his throat "Don't try me, Kol."

"Sorry," he chocked, pulling at her arm. Tyra let him go, ruffling his hair as he got up, rubbing at his throat "How are you this strong?"

Tyra smiled sweetly "You remember what I told you yesterday?"

"Oh," Kol realized "I… forgot."

They continued on our way to the Globe, Will falling back a bit to walk next to Tyra "You and your brother are very close, aren't you?"

"Yeah," Tyra nodded, tugging at her sleeve a little "We've always been really. Closer than we are to most of our other siblings. We just hadn't had a lot of time together…"

"Most?"

Tyra shrugged "It doesn't matter."

* * *

Inside the Globe, the Doctor jumped onto the stage, looking around "The columns there, right? Fourteen sides," he murmured "I've always wondered but I never asked. Tell me, Will. Why fourteen sides?"

"It was the shape Peter Streete thought best," Will shrugged, sitting down at the edge of the stage "That's all. Said it carried the sound well."

The Doctor frowned "Fourteen. Why does that ring a bell? Fourteen."

Martha looked over at him "There's fourteen lines in a sonnet."

"So there is," the Doctor hummed "Good point. Words and shapes following the same design." He was pacing up and down in front of the stage "Fourteen lines, fourteen sides, fourteen facets. Oh, my head… Tetradecagon. Think, think, think. Words, letters, numbers, lines."

Martha leaned over, her eyes staying on the Doctor who was currently trying to beat something into his head… or out of his head "Is he always like this?"

"You have no idea," Tyra grinned "Or maybe you have an idea… Trust me, what you've seen the other day was nothing new."

"This is just a theatre," Will pointed out, his eyes betraying his confusion.

The Doctor sighed "Oh, yeah. But a theatre's magic, isn't it? You should know. Stand on this stage, say the right words with the right emphasis at the right time. Oh, you can make men weep or cry with joy. Change them. You can change people's minds with words in this place. But if you exaggerate that… "

"It's like your police box," Martha cried out "Small wooden box with all that power inside."

"Oh." The Doctor turned his eyes onto Martha "Oh, Martha Jones, I like you. Tell you what, though. Peter Streete would know. Can I talk to him?"

Will shook his head, running a hand through his hair "You won't get an answer. A month after finishing this place, lost his mind."

"Why?" Martha questioned "What happened?"

"Started raving about witches," Will murmured "Hearing voices, babbling. His mind was addled."

The Doctor looked at the playwright unwaveringly "Where is he now?"

"Bedlam."

Martha looked very confused "What's Bedlam?"

"Bethlem Hospital," Tyra told her without looking up "It's a madhouse."

"How do you know that?" Kol raised his eyebrow.

She shrugged "It's been around since the… the 13th century, I think. It was a Priory before becoming a hospital in the 14th century. I know a few people who were brought there…"

"We're going to go there," the Doctor demanded "Right now. Come on." Martha and I followed him immediately with Kol quickly joining us as well.

"Wait," Will called out "I'm coming with you. I want to witness this at first hand." Two men entered at the same time as we walked out "Ralph, the last scene as promised. Copy it, hand it round, learn it, speak it. Back before curtain up. And remember, kid, project. Eyes and teeth. You never know, the Queen might turn up." He walked after us, shaking his head "As if. She never does."

Tyra grinned at him over her shoulder "You never know," she repeated.

Will snorted, shaking his head "So, Martha, tell me of Freedonia," he called out, making the other girl slow down a little "Where women can be doctors, writers, actors…"

"This country's ruled by a woman," Martha pointed out.

"Ah, she's royal," Will gave back "That's God's business." He wrapped his arm around Tyra's shoulders "Though you, Tyra, are a royal beauty."

Tyra coughed, almost stumbling over her own feet "Aren't you married?"

"But this is town," Will grinned.

Kol glanced over his shoulder with a grin, winking at his sister "I told you, Ty."

"Huh?" she blinked.

"Well, you were the one who told me that 'no man could possibly be interested in me'. I told you that it was all Nik's fault. Well, and Rebekah's," Kol shrugged "Maybe even Elijah's. Face it, Tyra. You're the baby of the family. None of us wanted you anywhere near the noblemen that we associated with."

Tyra pressed her eyes closed, trying to shrug Will's arm off but the playwright held fast "I'm not a baby, Kol. I haven't been for a long time. And I'm not Henrik either. I have never been."

"I know that, sister," Kol murmured "That doesn't mean that we don't want to protect you."

Tyra scoffed, shoving down the emotions "Yeah, we all know how Nik chooses to 'protect' me. I want to live my own life, Kol… Make my own mistakes. You're the only one who ever allowed me to be myself out of our siblings. Well, you and Finn but he…" She trailed off, shaking her head harshly "Doesn't matter. Let's go."

"Ty…" the Doctor spoke up when Tyra was about to storm past him.

She avoided him, just walking through the streets towards where she knew Bedlam was. Behind her, she could feel the stares burning into her back but none of them said or did anything… Except for Kol who caught up with her easily "**I'm sorry,**" he whispered, pulling Tyra to a halt.

"**Not your fault,**" Tyra shook her head, looking at the ground "**I shouldn't have said that. I haven't been too… No, it doesn't matter. I shouldn't have snapped.**"

Kol looked down at her for a moment before he pulled Tyra into a rough embrace "**I love you, sissy.**"

"**Love you too, Kol.**" Kol pressed a kiss to the top of her head before ruffling Tyra's hair, making it messier than it has to be "I take it back," she huffed, trying to pat down her hair again "You're a menace."

"And you aren't?" Kol laughed, shoving her lightly.

The Doctor shook his head "Are you two always like this? You haven't been nearly this bad when we met Niklaus."

"You should know," Tyra pointed out with a small grin "After all, I told you about… a lot. Kol and I have always been an… interesting mix. Drove Elijah to distraction, I believe."

Kol coughed into his hand, hiding the grin "Messing with him is always fun. He's too serious."

"He is. But then again. He had to mature quickly especially when it came to Mikael. I mean, we can say what we want but Elijah is more of a father to all of us than Mikael has ever been," she mumbled.

"Might be because he's not…" Kol trailed off, wrapping his arm around Tyra's shoulders again "I can see your point."

* * *

As they entered the hospital together, Will grabbed Tyra's arm lightly "Are you well?"

Tyra blinked up at him in surprise "Yes," she nodded "I'm sorry about my outburst. I shouldn't have said what I did…"

"No," Will shook his head, while the Doctor was talking to the keeper "I might not have known you for long, Tyra but I know that you meant every word. Speaking up for yourself is something you haven't done often, did you?"

Tyra shrugged "I ran away a while back… But no, I never got the chance with my other brothers."

"Then you should take it," the playwright told her, pulling her along by her hand. When had he taken that? Tyra couldn't even remember that…

The Keeper looked over his shoulder "Does my Lord Doctor wish some entertainment while he waits? I'd whip these madmen. They'll put on a good show for you. Mad dog in Bedlam."

"No," the Doctor snapped, his eyes lingering on Will and Tyra's interlocked hands for a moment, shaking himself out of it "I don't."

"Well, wait here, my lords," the Keeper sighed "While I make him decent for the ladies." He walked off down the corridor that held cells on either side.

As soon as he was gone, Martha whirled around to glare at Shakespeare "So this is what you call a hospital, yeah? Where the patients are whipped to entertain the gentry? And you put your friend in here?"

"Oh, it's all so different in Freedonia," Will scoffed with an eye-roll.

"But you're clever," Martha murmured "Do you honestly think this place is any good?"

Will's hand tightened around Tyra's "I've been mad," he declared "I've lost my mind. Fear of this place set me right again. It serves its purpose."

"Mad in what way?" Martha frowned, biting her lip.

"You lost your son." The Doctor's eyes showed sorrow and Tyra knew he had felt the same pain that Will had.

Will looked down "My only boy. The Black Death took him and I wasn't even there."

"I don't know," Martha whispered "I'm sorry."

"It made me question everything," Will explained "The futility of this fleeting existence… To be or not to be." He blinked "Oh, that's quite good."

Tyra nudged his side with a grin "Write that down. I like it."

"Maybe not," the playwright sighed "A bit pretentious?"

The Doctor raised his shoulder "Eh?"

"Don't listen to him," Tyra shook her head, throwing the Doctor a look "He's just being an ass."

Kol snorted "You tell him, Ty."

"Oh, shut up, Kol," she grumbled.

The Keeper appeared at the end of the corridor "This way, my lord."

"I know how you feel," Tyra murmured to Will while they followed the Keeper through the corridors to where Peter was "I lost my twin brother and it felt like the whole world just turned dark…" She could see Kol raise his head in front of her and could imagine his eyes narrowing at nothing in particular. He never did like it when she talked about Henrik because it made her feel worse most of the time "I was there, you know? I saw him being killed but I couldn't do anything… It still haunts me today. What if I could have done something? What if I had interfered?" She shook her head "There was nothing I could have done and I know that. I think you know that too."

"It doesn't make it better," Will pointed out quietly.

Tyra smiled up at him, her head lightly resting on his shoulder "Doesn't make it worse either."

"They can be dangerous, my lord," the Keeper called out "Don't know their own strength."

The Doctor let out a noise of annoyance "I think it helps if you don't whip them. Now get out." He shooed the man away, turning to look at Peter cowering on the ground "Peter? Peter Streete?"

"He's the same as he was," Will shook his head "You'll get nothing out of him."

"Peter?" The Doctor crouched down, touching the man's shoulder gently. When Peter looked up at him, staring, the Doctor raised his fingers Peter's temples "Peter, I'm the Doctor. Go into the past. One year ago. Let your mind go back. Back to when everything was fine and shining. Everything that happened in this year since happened to somebody else. It was just a story. A Winter's Tale. Let go." When Peter started to relax, the Doctor smiled "That's it. That's it, just let go." He lies him down on his cot "Tell me the story, Peter. Tell me about the witches."

Kol frowned "What is he doing?"

Tyra shrugged "I think this is similar to compulsion. Just not quite as…"

"Witches spoke to Peter," Peter breathed, his eyes wide and unseeing "In the night, they whispered. They whispered. Got Peter to build the Globe to their design. Their design. The fourteen walls. Always fourteen. When the work was done they snapped poor Peter's wits."

The Doctor tilted his head "Where did Peter see the witches? Where in the city? Peter, tell me. You've got to tell me where were they?" he demanded urgently.

"All Hallows Street."

A witch – in the loosest sense of the word – appeared across the cell from the Doctor, close to Peter "Too many words," she cackled. Tyra blinked at the cackling… thing and turned to Kol with a confused expression. Alien witches were the kind of witches from the story apparently… What the hell? Human witches were one thing but this? Kol stared at the hideous figure, his mouth opening and closing before he gave up and just continued staring.

Martha was in a similar state as Tyra and Kol "What the hell?"

"Just one touch of the heart," the witch cried out, leaning forward to get even closer to Peter.

The Doctor was about to lunge forward but Tyra kept a tight grip on his arm, ignoring his protest "No."

"Witch," Will breathed as the witch put her hand on Peter's chest, causing his heart to stop "I'm seeing a witch."

The witch looked up with a smirk "Now, who would be next, hmm? Just one touch. Oh, oh, I'll stop your frantic heart. Poor, fragile mortals."

"Let us out," Martha screamed, banging against the bars of the cell "Let us out."

"That's not going to work," the Doctor muttered, not taking his eyes from the figure across the room "The whole building's shouting that."

Kol tugged at Tyra's hair from behind "**Why don't we just kill them?**"

"**I'm on a bit of a break,**" she told him "**The Doctor doesn't like it. He prefers… his pacifistic ways.**"

"**And you just go along?**" Kol questioned.

Tyra shrugged "**Normally? Not really but I'm at least trying not to go off and kill anyone for a while.**"

"**If you say so,**" Kol mumbled.

The witch stared at each of them in turn "Who will die first, hmm?"

"Well, if you're looking for volunteers," the Doctor shrugged, going to step forward.

Tyra tightened her grip on his arm "Don't."

"Doctor, can you stop her?" Shakespeare questioned.

The witch laughed "No mortal has power over me."

"Oh, but there's power in words," the Doctor told her, taking a step back and closer to Tyra "If I can find the right one. If I can just know you…"

"None on Earth has knowledge of us," the witch pointed out.

The Doctor hummed "Then it's a good thing I'm here. Now think, think, think," he squinted at the figure "Humanoid female, uses shapes and words to channel energy. Ah!" He let out a victorious sound "Fourteen. That's it… Fourteen. The fourteen stars of the Rexel planetary configuration." The witch's smile fell from her face, shock colouring her features. The Doctor pointed at her "Creature, I name you Carrionite."

The witch screamed, vanishing in a slow flash of light. Martha walked forward hesitantly "What did you do?"

"I named her," the Doctor explained "The power of a name. That's old magic."

"I thought…"

The Doctor shook his head, knowing what she was about to say "Well, it's just a different sort of science. You lot, you chose mathematics. Given the right string of numbers, the right equation, you can split the atom. Carrionites use words instead."

"What's an atom?" Kol furrowed his brow.

"Use them for what?" Will asked at the same time. For some reason, the two of them seemed to talk at the same time relatively often.

The Doctor wrapped his arms around Tyra from behind, shooting a light glare at Shakespeare when he thought she wasn't looking. Well, Tyra guessed he was glaring since Will's eyes lit up in amusement and he winked at her "The end of the world."

"That turned dark quickly," Kol snorted "Can you two stop glaring at each other and figure out a way to get this done with?"

* * *

The Doctor started pacing up and down Shakespeare's room "The Carrionites disappeared way back at the dawn of the universe. Nobody was sure if they were real or legend."

"Well, I'm going for real," Will snorted.

Martha tilted her head, still not over the fact that she met an alien witch "But what do they want?"

"A new empire on Earth," the Doctor pointed out "A word of bones and blood and witchcraft."

Kol leaned against the wall "I really don't think they would be able to do it. There are a lot of people who would definitely want a word with them…"

"And win, most likely," Tyra threw in.

"But how?"

The Doctor's gaze caught Shakespeare's "I'm looking at the man with the words."

"Me?" Will asked "But I've done nothing."

"Hold on, though," Martha murmured "What were you doing last night when that Carrionite was in the room?"

Will furrowed his brow "Finishing the play."

The Doctor leaned forward, glancing at the pages "What happens on the last page?"

"The boys get the girls. They have a bit of a dance," the playwright explained, glancing down "It's all as funny and thought-provoking as usual. Except for those last few lines. Funny thing is, I don't actually remember writing them."

"That's it," the Doctor exclaimed "They used you. They gave you the final words like a spell, like a code. Love's Labour's Won. It's a weapon." He ran a hand through his hair in agitation "The right combination of words, spoke at the right place, with the shake of the Globe as an energy converter. The play's the thing." Will opened his mouth but the Time Lord cut him off "And yes, you can have that."

"At least you weren't quoting Dickens when we met him," Tyra snorted, shaking my head at him.

The Doctor crossed his arms, looking mock affronted "I'm making these up, thank you very much."

"Dream on," Tyra shook her head "You're just using your knowledge to your advantage."

"Isn't that the whole idea of knowing something?" he challenged. Tyra opened her mouth to argue before closing it again and huffed "That's answer enough." The Doctor nodded smugly before pulling out a very inaccurate map that Will handed him after asking for it "All Hallows Street. There it is… Ty, Martha, we'll track them down. Will, you get to the Globe. Whatever you do, stop that play. Kol?"

"I'm coming with you," Kol said immediately "Will can manage, right?"

The playwright nodded "I'll do it. All these years I've been the cleverest man around. Next to you, I know nothing."

"Oh, don't complain," Martha shook her head.

Will grinned "I'm not," he denied "It's marvellous. Good luck, Doctor." He bowed to me lightly "Tyra."

"Good luck, Shakespeare," the Doctor said, prodding Tyra to move "Once more onto the breach."

Will hummed as we left the room "I like that. Wait a minute, that's one of mine."

Tyra laughed from outside "You're just noticing that now?"

"Oh, just shift," the Doctor huffed with a smile, poking his head back into Will's room. The four of them moved through the streets quickly, trying to find the house as fast as we could "All Hallows Street," the Doctor exclaimed, stopping to look around "But which house?"

Martha just looked at the Doctor in confusion "The thing is, though am I missing something here? The world didn't end in 1599. It just didn't. Look at me, look at Tyra. We're living proof."

Tyra looked around in surprise "Curious. Didn't Rose ask the exact same thing in that dungeon in Cardiff?"

"She did… More or less," the Doctor agreed before turning back to look at the other girl "Oh, how to explain the mechanics of the infinite temporal flux? I know." He snapped his fingers "Back to the Future. It's like Back to the Future."

"The film?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes in exasperation "No, the novelisation. Yes, the film. Marty McFly goes back and changes history."

"What is he talking about?" Kol whispered.

"You'll find out in a few centuries," Tyra told him "The movies are actually pretty cool."

Kol grumbled "I don't think I like this…"

Martha gasped "And he starts fading away. Oh, my God, am I going to fade?"

"You and the entire future of the human race. It ends right now in 1599 if we don't stop it. But which house?" The Doctor looked around again, freezing when a door creaked open invitingly "Make that witch house…"

They walked over cautiously, Kol and Tyra slightly behind the Doctor and Martha. Just after They entered, Kol stopped just outside "What are you doing?" Martha frowned, looking at Tyra's brother.

"How can you just walk in?" Kol frowned, glancing at Tyra.

She looked over her shoulder, the Doctor already looking further into the house "Martha, look after him. I think there's something I need to speak to Kol about… Again."

"Sure," Martha shrugged, turning to follow the Time Lord.

Tyra ran her hand through her hair before walking back out of the door, joining Kol in the street. He glanced at her curiously "How did you do that? Entering a house without invitation?"

"I don't actually know," Tyra mumbled "I honestly forgot about it… I imagine it has something to do with the Tardis, although she refuses to tell me how she does half the stuff she does…" She rubbed her hand over her face in realization "I don't know how or why but it has to be but I guess it's like her frequent flier's privilege for vampires."

Kol blinked "You mentioned the Tardis… Spaceship? Is that what you said earlier?"

"Yes," Tyra nodded "It's complicated and I will explain this to you sometime… Just not now, alright? There are a few concepts that you won't understand. And even more that I don't even understand."

"So, this spaceship somehow makes you able to enter people's houses without permission? Is it just you?"

Tyra frowned "No. A friend of mine travelled with us for a little and he was able to enter as well." She thought back about Damon's lack of reaction.

Kol was about to say something else when they heard the Doctor's pained scream from inside. So far Tyra hadn't really paid attention to anything happening inside the house but this made her worry. She threw herself against the door, tumbling into the house.

"Oh, my God, Doctor," Martha breathed, stumbling over to where the Doctor was lying "Don't worry. I've got you…"

Tyra tilted her head "What did she do?"

"Stopped his heart," Martha whispered "I'm sorry… I…"

"That's exactly it," Tyra pointed out, nudging the Doctor's side with my boot "You can get up now."

Realisation dawned on Martha's features "Two hearts…"

"You're making a habit out of this," the Doctor grinned, making to get up. Tyra steadied him when he pitched forward, clutching at his chest "Ah! I've only got one heart working. How do you people cope? I've got to get the other one started. Hit me! Hit me on the chest!" Martha did as he asked, hitting him on the right side "Dah! Other side. Now, on the back, on the back. Left a bit. Dah, lovely. There we go. Badda booma!" He freed himself from Tyra's grasp and ran off "Well, what are you standing there for? Come one! The Globe!"

"Doctor," Tyra called out, seeing him run to the right. When he stopped, she pointed the way they had come from "It's that way."

He shook his head "No, it's not…"

"Yes, it is," Kol agreed with his sister, patting the Time Lord's back "If nothing else, Ty at least has a good sense of direction."

Tyra glared at her older brother "'If nothing else…'" she sighed and looked at Martha "Do you think I can exchange my brother for a dog? At least that one wouldn't make fun of me all the time."

Martha laughed "I know what you mean," she nodded "But I doubt it…"

"Pity," she commented, dodging Kol's attempt to grab at her.

"You two really are like children," the Doctor shook his head "You know, I don't think I ever saw you quite this relaxed, Tyra." She shrugged lightly, not looking at any of them.

* * *

The closer they got to the Globe, the stronger the wind blew around them. A bad storm raged over the building as the audience panicked, trampling each other in their quest to get out of the theatre. They didn't have much luck though because just after they entered through the stage door, the witches magicked the door close.

"Stop the play," the Doctor ranted, seeing Shakespeare waking up backstage "I think that was it. Yeah, I said, stop the play."

Will rubbed at his head in pain "I hit my head."

"Yeah, don't rub it," the Doctor commented "You'll go bald." The screaming outside picked up and the Doctor straightened "I think that's my cue." He ran out onto the stage with all of them following behind. Tyra blinked at the creatures that were hovering in a whirlwind above the area for the common folk.

Lilith gasped, her eyes widening from her place in the private box "The Doctor. He lives… Then watch this world become a blasted heath. They come. They come." She held the crystal out into the red light, causing several bat-like creatures fly into the theatre. They circled around, scaring the humans even more before flying up into the sky.

The Doctor whirled around and grabbed Will's arm "Come on, Will. History needs you."

"But what can I do?" the playwright cried over the wind.

"Reverse it."

Shakespeare looked at him with a deadpan stare "How am I supposed to do that?"

"The Shape of the Globe," the Doctor explained "Gives words power but you're the wordsmith, the one true genius. The only man clever enough to do it."

"But what words?" Will demanded "I have none ready."

Tyra grabbed his shoulders "You're William Shakespeare. If anyone can do it, it's you, Will."

Will still didn't look convinced, so the Doctor continued "Trust yourself, Will. When you're locked away in your room, the words just come, don't they, like magic. Words of the right sound, the right shape, the right rhythm. Words that last forever. That's what you do, Will. You choose perfect words."

Will closed his eyes for a moment before he took a deep breath "Close up this din of hateful, dire decay, decomposition of your witches' plot. You thieve my brains, consider me your toy. My doting Doctor tells me I am not."

"No," Lilith screamed in horror "Words of power."

"Foul Carrionite spectres, cease your show," the playwright continued "Between the points…" He glanced at the Doctor for the answer.

"Seven six one three nine oh."

Shakespeare repeated the numbers "Banished like a tinker's cuss, I say to thee…"

They all looked at each other for a moment before Martha's head snapped up "Expelliarmus."

"Expelliarmus," Will finished, pointing in the direction of the whirlwind.

As the Carrionites started to get sucked back into the tornado, the Doctor grinned "Good old JK…" One after the other, the other aliens were sucked back towards the crystal that Lilith was holding, pages flying into the storm as well. The backstage door opened, allowing them to be sucked in "Love's Labour's Won… There it goes."

The skies cleared with a flash and a bang. After a few moments, someone started clapping and then the whole audience joined in "They think it was all special effects?" Will bowed to the applauding crowd with the actors, while the Doctor wandered off and up to the private box the Carrionites had been in before, grabbing the crystal.

* * *

The next morning, Tyra was leaning against Kol's chest comfortably watching Shakespeare and Martha talk "And I say, a heart for a hart and a dear for a deer."

"I don't get it," Martha shook her head with a puzzled frown.

"A hart is a deer," Tyra told her.

Martha shook her head "Still don't get it."

Tyra rolled her eyes "I'm not explaining it." Her gaze drifted to the Bard "You have a dirty mind, by the way."

"Why thank you," Shakespeare grinned.

"That wasn't… Oh, never mind," she sighed, giving up on him.

The man turned back to Martha "Tell me a joke from Freedonia then."

"Okay," Martha nodded "Shakespeare walks into a pub and the landlord says, Oi mate, you're Bard."

Shakespeare chuckled "That's brilliant. Doesn't make sense, mind you, but never mind that."

"I don't get it either," Kol huffed, his chin on Tyra's shoulder.

It was then that the Doctor walked through the door that lead backstage with a small stiff ruff around his neck and an animal head in hand "Good props store back there. I'm not sure about this though. Reminds you of a Sycorax, Ty?"

"It kinda does, doesn't it?" she blinked, looking at the skull.

"Sycorax," Shakespeare murmured "Nice word. I'll have that off you as well."

Tyra's head shot up "I thought I knew the word… Not in the same context but… The Tempest."

The Doctor looked at Tyra with exasperation in his eyes, realising that it had been him who gave Shakespeare more than one of his signature phrases "I should be on ten percent… How's your head?"

"Still aching," the Bard answered, rubbing at the back of his head.

"Here," the Time Lord took off the ruff and put it on Shakespeare "I got you this. Neck brace. Wear that for a few days till it's better, although you might want to keep it. It suits you."

Martha tilted her head "What about the play?"

"Gone," the Doctor shook his head "I looked all over. Every single copy of Love's Labour's Won went up in the sky."

Shakespeare sighed sadly "My lost masterpiece."

"You could write it up again," Martha pointed out.

Tyra shook her head "I don't think that's a good idea. I mean, it is known as the lost play after all."

"Is it?" Kol asked.

Tyra shrugged "It will be."

"Oh, but I've got new ideas," Shakespeare smiled, his eyes dragging from Tyra to the Doctor "Perhaps it's time I wrote about fathers and sons, in memory of my boy, my precious Hamnet."

"Hamnet?" Martha blinked in surprise.

Tyra coughed, trying to hide the amusement at the look the Bard shot her "That's him," he nodded.

"Hamnet?"

"What's wrong with that?" Shakespeare asked, sounding slightly affronted.

The Doctor shook his head "Anyway, time we were off. I've got a nice attic in the Tardis where this lot can scream for all eternity."

"Attic?" Tyra questioned, getting up from the ground "Since when do you have an attic?"

"Fine," he sighed "A suitcase underneath the grating by the console."

Tyra smirked "That sounds about right."

"I have to get Martha back to Freedonia," the Doctor continued.

Shakespeare looked up, mirth shining in his eyes "You mean travel on through time and space."

"You what?" the Time Lord gaped.

The Bard smirked "You're from another world like the Carrionites and Martha is from the future. Tyra though… She's complicated."

"Aw," Tyra cooed playfully "Thanks."

"That's incredible," the Doctor breathed in surprise "You are incredible."

Shakespeare smiled "We're alike in many ways, Doctor. Martha, Tyra, let me say goodbye to you in a new verse. A sonnet for two beautiful ladies. I compare thee to a summer's day. Thou art more lovely and more temperate."

"Will," Burbage called, coming in with Kempe. They were two of the actors that Will had introduced us to last night after the drama with the Carrionites was over and done with.

Kempe took over, sounding out of breath "Will, you'll never believe it. She's here. She's turned up."

"We're the talk of the town. She heard about last night," Burbage nodded "She wants us to perform it again."

Martha tilted her head in confusion "Who?"

"Her Majesty," Burbage answered "She's here."

A fanfare sounded and the elderly Queen Elizabeth entered with two pikemen flanking her. The Doctor grinned in delight "Queen Elizabeth the First."

"Doctor?" the Queen breathed, her eyes narrowing in anger.

The Doctor's smile fell in shock "What?"

"My sworn enemy," the royal continued, glaring at the man.

"What?"

The Queen gestured to her people "Off with his head."

"What?" Shakespeare laughed at the Doctor in the background and Tyra couldn't help the small snort that escaped her. She really wasn't surprised that the Doctor had pissed off another monarch. He seemed to have a knack for that.

Martha shoved the Doctor "Never mind what, just run. See you, Will, and thanks."

"Stop that pernicious Doctor," the Queen shouted as the pikemen chased the Doctor and Martha out and into the streets.

"Well, I guess it's my time to say my goodbyes as well," Tyra spoke up, looking at Will "It was nice to meet you, Will."

The Bard drew her closer and without missing a beat pressed his lips to hers "Farewell."

"What did I do to earn that?" Tyra questioned quietly, leaning her head to the side as Shakespeare's hands caressed her face.

"Will I ever see you again?" he asked.

Tyra bit my lip "I don't know," she shook her head "I would like that but it's up to the Doctor."

"You love him, don't you?" the Bard asked knowingly "It is clear in your eyes."

"What?" Tyra frowned "Is it really that obvious? How come everyone knows about this crap and I had to be told by the Doctor to notice?"

Kol made a noise in the back of his throat "It's kind of hard to miss, sissy. Especially with how jealous the Doctor was. I would have expected that the two of you were lovers already."

"Oh, come off it, Kol," Tyra rolled her eyes "We're not, by the way."

"I don't think that he wishes to merely be your friend," Will pointed out "Every time we were close, he was trying very hard not to interfere. You did not notice?"

Tyra shook her head and sighed "I did but it isn't important right now. You know why I don't want to have anything to do with love, Kol."

Kol pulled her from Will's arms and into his own "When will I see you again?"

"Not too long now," she smiled "I would tell you where he stashed us but I honestly don't know."

"I'll miss you, Ty," Kol murmured, pressing a kiss to her forehead "Now go and find your man."

Tyra scoffed "Why do I like you again?"

"You love me," Kol shot back cheekily.

"Sometimes I wonder," she shook her head, hugging Will one last time "Thank you. It was really nice to meet you and write that story about your son, alright?" It was then that she remembered that the Queen was still in the theatre "Your Majesty," Tyra bowed her head "It has been too long."

"Lady Tyra," Queen Elizabeth smiled "I see you still haven't left the Doctor."

Tyra raised her shoulder in a shrug "It certainly seems so. I should go now. Goodbye." With those words, she jogged out of the theatre and used her vampire speed as soon as she was outside, sticking to the shadows to make sure no one saw her.

"Stop in the name of the Queen," she heard one of the Pikemen call out as the Doctor and Martha reached the Tardis.

Martha looked over her shoulder, her eyes widening as she saw Tyra directly behind the Doctor "What have you done to upset her?"

"How should I know?" the Doctor shrugged "Haven't even met her yet. That's time travel for you. Still, can't wait to find out."

"Well," Tyra spoke up as he opened the door to the Tardis "You have a knack of pissing off monarchs. I'm not surprised."

The Doctor rolled his eyes "Oh, hush you. But it is something to look forward to." Tyra passed him, walking up to the console as he got in behind her, shutting the door quickly "That was fun."

"I never thought there would be… Erm… Alien witchy creatures," Tyra spoke up "Although… If there's human witches then I really shouldn't be surprised."

Martha stared at Tyra "Human witches? You said that before but I don't believe you."

"There is," she shrugged "Same as there are werewolves and vampires."

"Yeah, right," the other girl snorted.

Tyra looked at her "Then explain to me how my brother was here. In 1599."

"He's a time traveller too."

"He didn't even know until I told him," Tyra smirked "Face it. I'm a vampire."

Martha shook her head "No way."

Tyra sighed and looked at the Doctor. He sighed and shrugged "Your choice."

"Alright then." Tyra sped towards the other girl, her vampire features on display "I really am a vampire."

"But that's…" she broke off, fear in her eyes. Tyra had no idea how she didn't put together one and one but then again… She was still getting used to the time travel part, so no one could really blame her.

Tyra rolled her eyes and let Martha go "Relax. I don't bite… Most of the time. I'm a good vampire… Well, kind of."

"Try not to scare her away, Tyra," the Doctor remarked, looking up from the console "You look tired… Both of you. Why don't you show Martha to a room?"

"Sure," Tyra shrugged, getting his subtle message. He wanted Martha to come along for at least one more trip and Tyra didn't have anything against that. Martha was actually pretty nice "Come on."

Martha followed Tyra out of the console room, keeping her distance from her "I – I have a question."

Tyra turned, looking at her "Shoot."

"Are you and the Doctor… You know?" Martha asked curiously "I mean, you seem so close but then you're not all of a sudden."

"I… We're complicated," Tyra told her quietly "That is actually a very good way of explaining it. We have gotten so much closer over the past years… The two of us have always been closer to each other than Rose."

Martha nodded, her eyes moving to the floor "I guess that makes sense. What's the deal with Rose? I mean, I understand that he misses her but he just goes on and on about her."

"We've known each other for two years. I actually met him shortly after Rose did," Tyra shrugged "What you have to understand is that the Doctor lost a lot of people and he doesn't always think about what people are feeling."

Martha bit her lip "Speaking of Rose… There's one more thing I wanted to ask you… You don't have to answer or anything but… You didn't seem too happy when the Doctor mentioned her last night but now you're speaking of her as if you were friends."

Tyra ran a hand through her hair "This doesn't get to the Doctor. Understood? He doesn't know." When Martha nodded, Tyra sighed "Rose and I didn't really get along. I mean, we were friends in the beginning and were actually getting along pretty well but things changed when she found out about me being a vampire. She was jealous of how close the Doctor and I were and… She actually wanted to be a vampire. Kept harassing me and one of my friends about it until he got so fed up that he snapped and compelled her to shut up about it and to not bother me with it anymore. Honestly, I should have done that from the beginning." Tyra stopped talking when she realised just how much she had said and grimaced sheepishly.

"Oh," Martha nodded "I'm sorry, I don't know what to say to that…"

"It's fine," Tyra told her "Not your fault, is it?" She stopped by a door "You can sleep here. If you want anything else in the room, decoration wise or anything… Just close your eyes and picture it. The Tardis will do the rest. Remember, not a word to the Doctor." Before Martha could question Tyra more, she turned and walked away.

Just around the corner, she ran into a wall that certainly wasn't supposed to be there. Tyra rubbed at her head and looked up "What are you doing here?"

The Doctor shrugged sheepishly "I wanted to talk to you about something."

"You heard what I told Martha, didn't you?" Tyra sighed, running her hand down her face "You do like your eavesdropping…"

"Did Rose really ask you to turn her?" he asked. When Tyra nodded silently, he tilted his head, wrapping an arm around her shoulder to pull her along "Why?"

Tyra let out an amused snort "Why do you think?" She stopped, turning to face him "The first time she asked was just before we said goodbye to Sarah Jane. She wanted to stay with you forever."

The Doctor closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose "Oh, that was a disaster. I'm not sure who was worse… Rose or Sarah Jane."

"Sarah Jane only really started when Rose was starting to make her comments," Tyra pointed out "She was perfectly civil to me."

"I'm dreading to ask but… Exactly how often did Rose ask you to turn her?" the Doctor asked.

Tyra inhaled before shaking her head "I didn't keep a tally," she shrugged "But it was more than enough to be annoying. Enough, that Damon compelled her in the end. Look, what she was planning was dangerous. I don't know how much you know about our transformation but Rose would have…"

"Been dangerous," the Doctor nodded knowingly "Her emotions were overwhelming even as a Human. I can't imagine how much worse she would have been as a vampire. I did like her. She was my friend but I believe that the two of you brought out the worst in each other on occasion."

"I would be insulted if I didn't know you were right," Tyra laughed lightly, not at all taking the Doctor's words to heart "She threatened to tell you, you know? What she was planning on telling you, though… I have absolutely no idea. Or why she thought that was a good idea. I told her that you would have most likely kicked both of us out if I had turned her."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," the Doctor sighed, knowing that he probably would have. One vampire on board was more than enough. Having a newborn on board would equal to taking a timebomb along to travel with him. He shook his head, pulling Tyra into her room. It had become a bit of a habit since the Christmas with Donna. The Doctor routinely stayed in Tyra's room or – occasionally the two of them would stay in the Doctor's room. The later was rare though, since the room was normally messy enough to not be able to get to the bed comfortably.

Tyra sighed and dropped face down on her bed "What did you want to talk about?" she asked, her voice muffled.

The Doctor shifted "I just thought that… You know, since…" He broke off, causing Tyra to turn around to look at him "I wanted to tell you about something that I haven't told anyone before. At least not outside of my family."

"You don't…"

"I know I don't have to," the Doctor cut her off "But I want to. I want you to know things about me. I want us to be able to share things that we couldn't share before."

Tyra raised herself to her knees and caught the Doctor by the sleeve, pulling him onto the bed with her "Then I would be happy to hear your story, Doctor."

He smiled at her as they got more comfortable "I told you that I had children, right? My former wife and I… It was an arranged marriage and while I didn't love her the way I should have, she was one of my best friends…"

**Omake**

Kol sighed, thinking over the events of the past couple of days. He had enjoyed seeing Tyra again… Especially, since she had seemed a lot happier than she had been in ages from his point of view. There still had been the same weight on her shoulders that he associated with Mikael but other than that, she seemed fine. The Doctor had been someone that Kol hadn't expected.

"You are thinking of her again, are you not?" Will asked, setting down a tankard of beer in front of the other man.

Kol looked up at him with a wry grin "What gave it away?"

"You shouldn't worry too much," Will pointed out.

"Isn't it my duty, though? I am her older brother," Kol sighed, running a hand through his hair "I love her so much and while I'm happy that she is finally overcoming some of her problems, I don't know what to think about it. Especially, since…"

Will nodded when Kol trailed off "Especially, since she seemed to be happy with the Doctor."

"Yeah," Kol breathed "That."

"I believe that you should trust her," Will shrugged "The way she has been talking, she has never been in love… Or at least hasn't realised it. The Doctor is a curious man and you saw that way they acted around each other."

Kol took a gulp from the tankard "Doesn't make me feel any better. She is my baby sister and now…"

"Now, she is in love," Will finished once again "I believe they will be good for each other. But, of course, that is only my observation."

"No, no," Kol smiled lightly "You're right. It is just a change I haven't expected. Especially not from Tyra." He tilted his head, looking at Will in consideration before a slow smile crept onto his face "So… We've seen alien witches. Do you want to see Human ones?"

Will's eyes widened "There are witches among us? Truly?"

"You seem surprised and yet you figured out that the Doctor is an alien?" Kol asked, sounding more amused than anything else.

Will shrugged "They were not very subtle. But you and Miss Tyra… I have trouble figuring you out completely."

Kol held out his hand "I believe that I can help you with that. If you let me."


	19. Gridlock

„Just one trip," the Doctor muttered to himself as he walked around the console "That's what I said. One trip in the Tardis and then home. Although…" He looked up at Martha with a grin "Although, I suppose we could stretch the definition. Take one trip to the past, one trip to the future. How do you fancy that?"

Martha shook her head, a big grin stealing its way onto her face "No complaints from me."

"How about a different planet?" the Doctor asked.

Tyra perked up "Ooh, we could go to…"

"Can we go to yours?" Martha cut her off, looking at the Doctor pleadingly.

Tyra bit down on her lip, glancing at the Doctor nervously, unsure of what to do. He shook his head, the sadness only visible for a split second "Ah, there's plenty of other places."

"Come on, though," Martha pleaded "I mean, planet of the Time Lords. That's got to be worth a look. What's it like?" She looked over at Tyra "Have you been there before?"

Tyra shook her head "Martha… Drop it. Please?"

"No, come on," Martha dismissed her "Is it like, you know, outer space cities, all spires and stuff?"

The Doctor shot Tyra an uncomfortable look as she walked over to him, resting her hand on his back out of Martha's view. He licked his lips "I suppose it is."

"Great big temples and cathedrals," Martha gushed, getting more and more excited.

"Yeah," he breathed.

Martha looked like she was enjoying this way too much. Not that Tyra could blame her. She was excited… And didn't realise that she was hurting the Doctor "Lots of planets in the sky?"

The Doctor's eyes unfocused as he recalled the view he had described to Tyra on occasion "The sky is a burnt orange with the Citadel enclosed in a mighty glass dome, shining under the twin suns. Beyond that, the mountains go on forever. Slopes of deep red grass, capped with snow."

"Can we go there?" Martha breathed, her eyes shining.

"Nah, the Doctor shook his head, shrugging off Tyra's hand "Where's the fun for me? I don't want to go home. Instead, this is much better." He started running around the console, flicking switched left and right "Year five billion and fifty-three, planet New Earth. Second hope of mankind. Fifty thousand light-years from your old world and we're slap bang in the middle of New New York." He paused "Although, technically speaking it's the fifteenth New York from the original, so it's New New New New New New New New New New New New New New York. One of the most dazzling cities ever built."

* * *

Martha huffed, zipping her jacket close immediately after stepping out into the rain "Oh, that's nice," she smiled sarcastically "Time Lord version of dazzling."

"Nah," the Doctor waved off "Bit of rain never hurt anyone. Come on, let's get under cover." Just before they could find over, Tyra flinched when a drop of water hit her neck, sliding down her collar.

"Well, it looks like the same old Earth to me, on a Wednesday afternoon," Martha shrugged, looking around with her nose wrinkled.

Tyra shook her head "Well, I guess there's a reason why it's called New Earth now, is there?"

The Doctor turned around to face the monitor behind him "Hold on, hold on. Let's have a look." He used his sonic to get the thing working again.

"_And the driving should be clear and easy with fifteen extra lanes open for the New New Jersey expressway,_" a woman's voice explained as a picture of a high-tech Manhattan was shown with flying cars zooming about. It looked almost exactly like it had a year ago when they went to the hospital and met Cassandra and the Face of Boe.

"Oh, that's more like it," the Doctor exclaimed "That's the view we had last time. This must be the lower levels, down in the base of the tower. Some sort of under-city."

Martha raised her eyebrow in amused annoyance "You've brought me to the slums?"

"Martha, word of warning," Tyra told her "We're most likely always going to end up in places like this… The Doctor has a knack for landing where we don't want to be."

"That's not true," the Doctor exclaimed "It's much more interesting down here anyway. It's all cocktails and glitter up there. This is the real city."

Martha shook her head "You'd enjoy anything."

The Doctor grinned "That's me. Ah, the rain's stopping. Better and better."

"When you say last time… was that the two of you and Rose?"

"Er, yea," the Doctor nodded, causing Tyra to sigh in exasperation "Yeah, it was, yeah."

Martha sent him an indecipherable look "You're taking me to the same planets that you took her?"

"What's wrong with that?" the Doctor asked in confusion.

Tyra shook her head at him "Oh, you idiot."

"What?"

Martha sighed "Nothing. Just ever heard the word rebound?" She headed off down the alley.

Tyra shot the Doctor a light glare before following her "Are you okay?"

"I just don't get it," Martha mumbled, glancing over her shoulder at the Doctor "Why…?"

"Martha, we lost Rose not too long ago," she told her "Give him a little time, alright? I swear that he's not usually like this."

Martha nodded her head, looking a little disbelieving "Right… Hey, have you really not been to his planet yet?"

"I…" Tyra broke off with a sigh "It's not for me to tell but… Could you lay off him a little?"

"Why?" Martha frowned "And what was up with him earlier?"

Tyra shook her head "It's his story, Martha. Give him time, alright? You haven't known him for long and he's…"

"I get it," Martha nodded with a small smile "I might not understand what's going on but… I can see what's in front of me. You're a good friend, you know? Both to him and to me too."

"Thanks," Tyra smiled lightly.

Martha shook her head "No, seriously. The way the two of you act… You're so close and I'm already kind of feeling like a third-wheel but…"

"You don't have to feel like you need to compete with me," Tyra pointed out "The Doctor has a huge heart. More than enough for all of his Companions. Oh… Remind me to tell you about the incident between Rose and Sarah Jane sometime. It was epic and it shows a side of Rose that the Doctor tries to forget about."

"I don't think I'm here long enough," Martha mumbled.

Tyra patted her shoulder before making her way over to the Doctor. They had kept their voices down enough that he wouldn't have heard anything "It's not all as it seems. If you ask me, you'd do well with us. And I'll put in a good word for you if that's what you want."

Just as they rejoined the Doctor, a man opened the front of his stall "Oh," he exclaimed, seeing them standing there "You should have said. How long you been there? Happy. You want happy."

"Customers," a second vendor breathed as two more stalls opened "Customers. We've got customers."

"We're in business," the third laughed "Mother, open up the Mellor and the Read."

The first man looked down at them "Happy, Happy, lovely happy Happy."

"Anger. Buy some Anger," the second pharmacist called over the other.

"Get some Mellor," the third cried out "Makes you feel all bendy and soft all day long."

The first man looked at the others "Don't go to them. They'll rip you off. Do you want some Happy?"

The Doctor shook his head and reached for Tyra's hand, intent on getting away from them "No, thanks."

Martha leaned over to them "Are they selling drugs?"

"I think they're selling moods," the Doctor pointed out.

Tyra raised her eyebrow at him "Isn't that the same thing?"

More people started to enter the area, dressed in rags. A woman walked over to the stalls, looking between the three people "I want to buy Forget," she spoke up."

The third pharmacist leaned forward, arranging her face in a worried expression even though her eyes were lit up at the prospect of a sale "I've got Forget, my darling. What strength? How much do you want forgetting?"

"It's my mother and father," the woman sniffed "They went on the motorway."

"Oh, that's a swine," the pharmacist mumbled in fake sympathy and held out a small square piece of plastic "Try this. Forget Forty-three. That's two credits."

The Doctor stepped toward them "Sorry but hold on a minute. What happened to your parents?"

"They drove off," the woman explained, not really telling them much at all.

"Yeah, but they might drive back," the Doctor pointed out, tilting his head.

The woman scoffed "Everyone goes to the motorway in the end. I've lost them."

The Doctor frowned, trying to understand what was happening here "But they can't have gone far. You could find them…" When she went to stick the Forget to her neck, he shook his head violently "No. No, no, don't."

"I'm sorry, you were saying?" the woman blinked, the tab sticking to her back.

"Your parents," the Doctor said "Your mother and father. They're on the motorway."

The woman tilted her head "Are they?" she asked airily "That's nice. I'm sorry, I won't keep you." With that said, she wandered away, still in a bit of a daze.

"So, that's the Human race five billion years in the future," Martha snorted "Off their heads on chemicals."

Tyra whirled around when she heard someone coming closer and was about to reach out to pull Martha away when a man grabbed her from behind. A woman pointed a gun at the Doctor and Tyra. The man looked at them apologetically "I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry. We just need three, that's all."

"No," the Doctor hissed, holding out his hand "Let her go. I'm warning you, let her go. Whatever you want, I can help. The three of us, we can help. But first, you've got to let her go."

Tyra narrowed her eyes at the two "You're bluffing," she said, walking toward them.

The Doctor reached out to pull her back, out of the way of the gun "What the hell are you doing, Ty?" he whispered.

Before the man could disappear through the door with Martha, Tyra sped forward, slamming it closed. In one quick movement, she threw the gun away and pressed the man against a wall, freeing Martha in the process "Now," she started, staring into his eyes "You will tell me what this was about."

"The Motorway," he said "We need three people."

Tyra looked over her shoulder at the Doctor. He stepped forward at her nod "Why?"

"It's car-sharing policy. You get special access to the fast lane if you're carrying three adults," the man replied.

"What are you doing to him?" the woman demanded, her voice shaking in fear.

Tyra looked over at her and let the man go "We just want to know what's going on," she told her, her hands raised a little "You did try to kidnap one of us, after all."

"I – I'm sorry," the woman sobbed, wrapping her arms around her stomach "We just…"

"What's your name?" Martha asked.

"C – Cheen and this is Milo," she looked at them pleadingly "I'm sorry, really sorry. We just needed access to the fast lane."

The Doctor tilted his head "Why did you need access to the fast lane?"

"We wanted to go out to Brooklyn. I'm pregnant. We only found out last week…" Cheen explained

Milo blinked a couple of times, shaking his head "What happened? Cheen?"

Cheen threw herself at him, hiding her face in his shoulder "Milo."

"What have you done to her?" Milo demanded.

Tyra rolled her eyes and sighed "Nothing. You're the people who tried to kidnap our friend. Now tell us more about the motorway."

"Tyra," the Doctor warned, placing his hand on her shoulder.

Tyra's shoulders slumped "Right."

"We need to go if we want to make it," Cheen shook her head.

"Make it how?" the Doctor asked "What is the deal with the fast lane? Why did that woman earlier wanted to forget that her parents were on the motorway?"

Milo frowned "You don't know?"

"Would we be asking if we did?" the Doctor shook his head.

Tyra took a deep breath and looked into their eyes "Tell us the truth."

"You go to the motorway and you never come back," Milo explained "Every exit is closed and it has been for years. That's why we want to go onto the fast lane. We want to reach Brooklyn within the next six years."

"Six years?" Martha exclaimed "How far is it?"

"Ten miles."

The Doctor raised his eyebrows "Ten miles in six years? And that's the fast lane?"

Milo shrugged "That's the way it is."

"Something is wrong here," the Doctor shook his head, running a hand through his hair "Come on. I think I know where to go."

* * *

"Where are we going?" Martha asked, rushing after him, leaving Cheen and Milo standing there. Tyra looked between them and the Doctor before quickly compelling them to go back home, to wait.

The Doctor stopped at the stalls, hammering on the closed hatch "Thought you'd come back," the third pharmacist spoke up before her eyes fell on Martha "Oh, you got her back."

"Word of advice," the Doctor hissed, his eyes narrowing "All of you. Cash up, close down and pack your bags."

"Why's that, then?" the pharmacist laughed nervously.

"Because as soon as I've found out what's going on here," the Doctor started "Then I'm coming back, and this street closes tonight." With that, he looked back at Tyra and Martha, running further into the city.

"Where are we going?" Martha called out, trying to keep up with the Doctor and Tyra.

The Doctor stopped at a crossroads and looked around "The Senate. We need to find out what's happening here."

"How are we getting there?" Tyra asked, looking around "Do you even know where it is?"

"Yeah, about that…" the Doctor grinned sheepishly.

Tyra groaned "Great."

"Doctor," a voice called out as a figure hurried closer "You're a hard man to find."

The Doctor frowned at the figure, taking her in "Do I know you?"

"Is that a cat?" Martha whispered to Tyra.

"Cat, nun, nurse… Take your pick," Tyra replied, crossing her arms as she looked at Novice Hame.

Novice Hame looked from the Doctor to Tyra "You haven't aged at all. Time has been less kind to me."

"Novice Hame," the Doctor realised, pulling her into a hug before jumping back "No, hold on, get off. Last time we met, you were breeding Humans for experimentation."

"What?" Martha exclaimed.

Tyra waved her off "I'll explain later."

Hame looked down "I've sought forgiveness, Doctor, for so many years, under his guidance. And if you come with me, I might finally be able to redeem myself."

The Doctor shook his head "I'm not going anywhere. Except for maybe the Senate."

"The situation is even worse than you might imagine," Novice Hame sighed, reaching out to grab ahold of the three of them.

"What are you…?" Martha started before they were beamed away.

* * *

"Ouch," Tyra cursed under her breath as she landed on the ground with Martha on top of her. She got up, glaring at Novice Hame "A little warning would have been nice," she grumbled "Like… How hard can it be to say 'Oh, careful. I'm going to use a teleport in a minute'."

"_Are you done?_" an amused voice questioned, reverberating inside her head. Tyra looked around in confusion, glancing at the other three who apparently hadn't heard anything. It was the Face of Boe. Without a doubt. Tyra looked around in confusion "_Over here._"

The Doctor looked at Tyra in confusion "What's wrong?"

"Doctor," Novice Hame spoke up, drawing the Doctor and Martha's attention away from Tyra's weird behaviour.

Tyra ignored them, walking into the direction she guessed he was in and smiled when her eyes fell on the glass container with the giant head inside "Hello again."

"_Hello, Valkyrie._"

"You… But…" Tyra stuttered, shaking her head "_Jack?_"

"_I would have thought that you would've figured it out the last time we spoke,_" he chuckled, eyes lighting up in amusement "_Then again. You were somewhat preoccupied with everything going on._"

"Hm," she hummed with a small grin, placing her hand on the glass gently "Being possessed can take a lot out of you… Jack? How are you alive? I – The Doctor never told me what happened. He just said that you stayed behind but… I could have sworn that you died."

The Face of Boe moved his head as much as he could, looking at her "_I can't tell you that. I'm sorry, Valkyrie. This is something you'll find out in time._"

"In time?" she repeated, looking over her shoulder to listen to the Doctor, Novice Hame and Martha for a moment "Jack… What is that supposed to mean?"

"_I really can't tell you. Timelines and all that,"_ Jack told her, his eyes sad "_So, how have you been since we last saw each other?_"

Tyra raised her eyebrow "Do you mean New Earth or the Game Station?"

"_Isn't that almost the same thing?_"

"True," Tyra shrugged "It's – I don't know. It's better now that Rose isn't here, I guess. She was getting a bit annoying and… Well…"

Jack chuckled "_Let me guess. The Doctor didn't notice a thing._"

"Surprisingly, he did. She went off on me a couple of times because the Doctor talked to her about her behaviour."

"_I'm surprised,_" Jack laughed lightly "_So, has he confessed yet?_"

Tyra blinked "Wait… What? How do you know about… Oh, right."

"_So, he did?_" Jack asked, his eyes gleaming "_Come on, don't leave me hanging here._"

"No," Tyra shook her head "We're not talking about this now. I think I would love to know how you've turned into a giant head. Then again…" She shrugged with an unrepentant grin "I always did say that your ego was too big."

"_Doctor,_" Jack greeted.

"The Face of Boe," the Doctor exclaimed, coming up behind Tyra.

Jack shot Tyra a quick warning before turning to talk to the Doctor "_I knew you would come._"

"Back in the old days, I was made his nurse as penance for my sin," Hame murmured, taking a seat next to the tank.

Martha was staring at the tank as Tyra walked up next to her "That… Is a…?"

"Meet the Face of Boe," Tyra whispered "He's an old friend of ours."

"But he's a… head," Martha breathed, staring at the Face of Boe incredulously.

Tyra grinned "I know. He won't tell me exactly how that happened… Oh well, maybe someday."

The Doctor knelt down in front of the tank "Old friend, what happened to you?"

"_Failing,_" the Face of Boe rasped.

"He protected me from the virus by shrouding me in his smoke. But with no one to maintain it, the City's power died. The under-city would have fallen into the sea."

The Doctor nodded "So he saved them."

"The Face of Boe wired himself into the mainframe. He's giving his life force just to keep things running," Hame explained.

Tyra smiled lightly "I'm not surprised. You were always someone who wanted to save people." She switched to speaking to the Face of Boe mentally "_Weren't you, Jackie?_"

"I feel like I'm missing something," the Doctor mumbled, looking from the Face of Boe to her and back before he shook his head.

Martha snorted "Yeah? At least I'm not the only one."

The Doctor smiled at her for a moment before getting back on track "But there are planets out there," the Doctor pointed out "You could have called for help."

Hame shook her head "The last act of the Senate was to declare New Earth unsafe. The automatic quarantine lasts one hundred years."

"So, the two of you stayed here, on your own for all these years," the Doctor whispered, quietly impressed with both of them.

"We had no choice," Hame shrugged.

"Yes, you did."

The Face of Boe looked at the Doctor with his old eyes "_Save them, Doctor. Save them._"

The Doctor got working, occasionally telling Hame or me to do something or fetch him another thing. Eventually, he got a computer working "Novice Hame, hold that in place. Think, think, think, think. Take the residual energy, invert it, feed it through the electricity grid."

"There isn't enough power," Hame pointed out.

"Oh, you've got power," the Doctor shot back "You've got me. I'm brilliant with computers, just you watch. Hame, every switch on that bank up to maximum. I can't power up the city, but all the city needs is people."

Hame licked her lips "So what are you going to do?"

"This." The Doctor threw a big switch, causing all the lights to go out "No, no, no, no, no, no. The transformers are blocked. The signal can't get through."

"_Doctor,_" the Face of Boe rasped out.

Tyra looked at him, kneeling down in front of the tank with Martha by her side "Are you alright?"

"_Yes,_" Jack nodded "_Doctor, I give you my last…_" He breathed out and the power came back online.

"_Jack,_" she called out inside her head.

The Doctor glanced over his shoulder "Hame, help Ty and Martha to look after him. Don't you go dying on me, you big old face. You've got to see this. The open road. Ha!" He worked some more, causing the roof hatches to open. He jumped onto a platform and grabbed the mic "Sorry, no Sally Calypso. She was just a hologram. My name's the Doctor and this is an order. Everyone drive up. Right now." He paused and when no one moved, he continued "I opened the roof of the motorway. Come on. Throttle those engines. Drive up. All of you. The whole under-city. Drive up, drive up, drive up! Fast. We've got to clear that fast lane. Drive up and get out of the way."

Tyra looked back to Jack and leaned her head against the glass, trying to keep the tears from falling. He was as good as her brother and she really hated seeing him like this "Please don't die."

"You keep driving," the Doctor exclaimed "All the way up. Because it's here, just waiting for you. The city of New New York and it's yours."

"Try not to be too cliché in your enthusiasm, Doc," Tyra called out.

The Doctor huffed "I'm not. I'm just glad it worked. Although… Why wouldn't it have? I'm brilliant."

Tyra snorted "Sure, you are. Still can't drive the Tardis worth a damn, though."

"Shut up," he mumbled.

A chuckle sounded through my head "_You two get along better than you and Big Ears did. No, that's wrong… But you squabble more."_

"I like it," Tyra shrugged.

"_He does too,_" Jack explained.

The Doctor was still focussed on the screen when both Martha and Tyra jumped back in shock when a crack started spreading across Boe's tank "Oh, no, you don't," the Doctor huffed, running over to them. He fell to his knees, staring at the giant head on the ground by the now broken tank.

"Doctor?" Martha breathed in shock, watching the scene worriedly "What's happening?"

The Doctor glanced over his shoulder, while Tyra knelt back down next to Jack "Don't worry about him. He'll be fine."

"My lord gave his life to save the city," Hame whispered "And now he's dying."

"No," the Doctor snapped "Don't say that. Not old Boe. Plenty of life left."

Tyra let out a shaky breath "Doctor… Please don't."

"Don't tell me you gave up as well," he hissed at her.

Tyra's hand was resting on Jack's cheek as he mentally warned her not to tell the Time Lord anything "You'll understand someday. Let him go?"

"What are you keeping from me, Ty?" he asked with narrowed eyes "Boe?"

Jack inhaled "It's good to breathe the air once more," he rasped.

"Who is he, really?" Martha questioned, kneeling down between Tyra and the Doctor.

The Doctor shrugged "I don't even know but apparently Tyra does and won't tell me. Legend says the Face of Boe has lived for billions of years. Isn't that right? And you're not about to give up now."

"Everything has its time," Boe said "You know that, old friend, better than most."

Hame looked up at the Time Lord "The legend says more."

"Don't," the Doctor shook his head "There's no need for that."

"It says that the Face of Boe will speak his final secret to a traveller and his warrior," Hame continued.

The Time Lord closed his eyes "Yeah, but not yet. Who needs secrets, eh?"

Tyra rubbed Boe's cheek gently "As much as I hate to keep you here… I don't want you to die."

"I have seen so much," he murmured "Perhaps too much. I am the last of my kind, as you are the last of yours, Doctor."

"That's why we have to survive," the Doctor whispered "Both of us. Don't go."

Jack looked up at us "I must. But know this, Time Lord. You are not alone. And keep your warrior close. There will be hard times coming. Be there for each other." With that, he let out one last breath before his eyes closed.

Tyra hid my face in her hands as Hame started weeping across from her.

* * *

By the time they got back to Pharmacy Town, Tyra was trailing behind the other two quietly, her arms wrapped around her stomach. The Doctor looked around the closed shops with faked happiness "All closed down."

Martha smiled "Happy?" She had given up on talking to Tyra about what the Face of Boe had meant a while back.

"Happy Happy," the Doctor nodded "New New York can start again. And they've got Novice Hame. Just what every city needs. Cats in charge. Come on, time we were off."

"But what did he mean?" Martha questioned "The Face of Boe? You're not alone."

The Doctor looked over at her "I don't know."

"You've got us," Martha said, pointing to herself and Tyra "Is that what he meant?"

"I don't think so. Sorry."

Martha crossed her arms "Then what?"

"Doesn't matter," the Doctor shrugged off "Back to the Tardis, off we go." He blinked for a moment when Martha grabbed a chair, sitting down in protest "Alright, are you staying?"

Tyra walked over to the Tardis, turning around when Martha spoke up "Till you talk to me properly, yes. He said last of your kind. What does that mean? Why did Tyra stop me from asking about seeing your planet?"

"It really doesn't matter," the Doctor shrugged.

Martha groaned "You don't talk. I know more about Tyra than I know about you. You never say. Why not?"

"_Fast falls the eventide._"

"It's the city," Martha breathed, looking to the sky.

"_The darkness deepens…_"

Marth smiled and continued "They're singing."

"_Lord, with me abide. When other helpers fail…_"

"I lied to you because I like it," the Doctor sighed, grabbing a second chair. He waved Tyra over to him and pulled her onto his lap "I could pretend. Just for a bit, I could imagine they were still alive, underneath a burnt orange sky. I'm not just a Time Lord. I'm the last of the Time Lords." He squeezed Tyra's middle tightly, burying his face in her shoulder "The Face of Boe was wrong. There's no one else."

Martha's gaze turned sad "What happened?"

"_Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day._"

"There was a war," the Doctor whispered into Tyra's shoulder "A Time War. The Last Great Time War. My people fought a race called the Daleks, for the sake of all creation. And they lost. They lost." He looked up with sorrow in his eyes "Everyone lost. They're all gone now. My family, my friends, even that sky. Oh, you should have seen it, that old planet. The second sun would rise in the south and the mountains would shine. The leaves on the trees were silver and when they caught the light every morning, it looked like a forest on fire. When the autumn came, the breeze would blow through the branches like a song."

"_The darkness deepens. Lord, with me abide._"

* * *

Martha went back to her room, while Tyra was curled up on the upper landing of the console room, staring at the wall blankly.

"What are you doing here? I thought you went to your room?" the Doctor murmured, sitting down next to her.

"Do you think he's in a better place?" Tyra asked "Do you think there's something after you die?"

The Doctor laid down behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder "I don't know, Ty. The only thing we can do is hope." He sighed before a pout stole its way across his face "Do you really not want to tell me who he was? Because I know that he told you something."

"I promised," Tyra shrugged "But I'm sure you'll find out soon."

"Why can't you tell me now? That's unfair."

Tyra turned around and grinned at the Doctor's pout "Sorry, Doc. I promised."


	20. Daleks in Manhattan

The Doctor fiddled with the necklace in his hand. He had gone to Shan Shen to commission the pendant in question. He wanted Tyra to have something that proved what he was feeling for her. The necklace had a blue background with Gallifreyan writing on it. He had specifically requested that sketch.

His head snapped up when he heard voices coming closer, slipping the pendant into his pocket when he noticed that Tyra wasn't alone "Hey, are you ready?" he asked, looking at the two girls when they entered.

"Always," Martha grinned excitedly.

"Hold on tight, then," the Doctor smiled, the necklace weighing heavily in his pocket.

Tyra moved over to him while he steered the Tardis "Are you okay?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" the Doctor asked.

Tyra studied him for a moment before she shook her head "No reason."

* * *

"Where are we?" Martha asked as soon as we stepped out of the Tardis.

The Doctor inhaled exaggeratedly "Ah, smell that Atlantic breeze. Nice and cold. Ty, do you know where we are?"

Tyra glanced around before she blinked, leaning her head up to look at the Statue of Liberty "New York," she smiled at seeing her old home again. Out of all countries and cities, Tyra had spent the most time in England and New York. But mostly because Niklaus seemed to favour England at the time and she was still staying with her siblings back then "Martha? Look up."

"Is that?" she gasped, blinking rapidly at the statue "Oh, my God. That's the Statue of Liberty."

"Gateway to the New World, right Ty?" the Doctor said "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free."

Martha shook her head "That's so brilliant. I've always wanted to go to New York. I mean, the real New York, not the new, new, new, new, new one."

"Well, there's the genuine article," the Doctor mused "So good, they named it twice. Mind you, it was New Amsterdam originally. Harder to say twice. No wonder it didn't catch on." He grimaced lightly "New Amsterdam, New Amsterdam."

Martha squinted at the city across the sea "I wonder what year it is, because look, the Empire State Building's not even finished yet."

"Work in progress," the Doctor nodded "Still got a couple of floors to go and if I know my history, that makes the date somewhere around…"

"1930," Tyra cut in "Just about, I think."

Martha hummed "November 1st, 1930."

"You're getting good at this," the Doctor said in surprise, turning to face the two girls. He glanced down to see the newspaper in Martha's hand and rolled his eyes.

"Eighty years ago. It's funny because you see all those old newsreels all in black and white like it's so far away but here we are. It's real. It's new." The Doctor grabbed the newspaper from Martha's hands, scanning the article on the front page, while Martha turned to Tyra "Where were you during the 1930s?"

She furrowed her brow "I… I was about to get on my way here, I think. Met up with some friends in New York in 1936 but now I should still be in Japan."

The Doctor put down the newspaper "I think our detour just got longer." He turned around the paper and pointed to the article.

"Hooverville Mystery Deepens," Martha read quietly "What's Hooverville?"

The Doctor didn't answer, instead getting back into the Tardis to bring them closer to Central Park.

* * *

"Herbert Hoover, thirty-first President of the USA, came to power a year ago. Up till then, New York was a boomtown, the Roaring Twenties and then…"

"The Wall Street Crash," Martha realized "When was that, 1929?"

Tyra nodded, turning to face her "Lots of people lost their job and all of a sudden, the huddled masses doubled in number and they had nowhere to go. So, they ended up here." She shrugged, waving her hands around "In the middle of Central Park."

"What, they actually live in the park?" Martha wondered "In the middle of the city?"

"Where else should they have gone?" Tyra asked her quietly, glancing at the raggedy tents and the people milling around fires "They lost their jobs and couldn't pay for anything anymore. It's typically human, Martha. No one wants to help them. They're just left here to starve."

The Doctor placed his hand on Tyra's shoulder "You only come to Hooverville when there's nowhere else to go."

"You thieving lowlife," a black man cried out, throwing himself at another man "… for a single loaf of bread."

The other man defended himself from the attack "I didn't touch it."

Tyra's mouth dropped open when she saw the person who left the tent with an older man in tow "What do you two think you're doing?" the woman demanded, glaring at the fighting men.

"He stole my bread," the black man hissed, jabbing his finger at the man he had been fighting with.

"That's enough," the older man sighed, turning to the supposed thief "Did you take it?"

The man's shoulder's sagged forward in defeat, pulling out the loaf of bread "I'm starving, Solomon."

"We're all starving," Solomon told him, taking the bread from him "We all got families somewhere." He broke the bread in half, giving both men a piece "No stealing and no fighting. You know the rules. Thirteen years ago, I fought in the Great War. A lot of us did. And the only reason we got through was because we stuck together. No matter how bad things get, we still act like human beings. It's all we got." The two men nodded, giving each other slightly sheepish smiles before turning to walk off in different directions.

Tyra looked at the very familiar woman who had apparently just noticed her "Well, I haven't seen you in a while," Tyra told her with a grin.

"Tyra," the redhead smiled, holding out her arms to give her a hug "How are you?"

"Am I missing something?" the Doctor blinked "You know her, Tyra?"

Tyra nodded with a grin, her arm still around the woman's waist "Doctor, this is my oldest brother's wife Sage. Sage, this is the Doctor and Martha."

"Nice to meet you, Doctor," Sage smiled, shaking the Doctor's hand.

The Doctor nodded at her before turning to Solomon who had been looking at Sage and Tyra curiously "I suppose that you're the boss around here?"

"Hm," Solomon hummed "And you're the Doctor, no?" He snorted, shaking his head "We've got stockbrokers, lawyers but you're the first doctor. Neighbourhood gets classier by the day."

Martha looked around "How many people live here?"

"At any one time, hundreds," Solomon sighed "No place else to go. But I will say this about Hooverville. We are a truly equal society. Black, white, all the same. All starving but thanks to Miss Sage and Damon, we at least get food regularly. The two of them have been a huge help to all of us."

Tyra's head snapped to Sage "Damon's here too?" she asked before shaking her head "Right… I forgot the two of you were practically inseparable for a while."

"Don't you mean the three of us?" Sage questioned "You're just as close to us even if you had to leave ten years ago."

Solomon cleared his throat, pulling the attention back to himself "The three of you are welcome here… But tell me, Doctor, you're a man of learning, right? Explain this to me. That there's going to be the tallest building in the world." He jabbed his finger at the Empire State Building "How come they can do that when we got people starving in the heart of Manhattan?"

"Come on," Sage gestured "I'll show you around and we can talk while Solomon talks to your friends."

Tyra looked at the Doctor pleadingly "Is that okay?"

"Sure," the Doctor shrugged "Go and talk to your friends… You know, I think this was why Damon was so alright with everything when we met last."

"Ah," Tyra nodded "That… Makes sense."

Martha nudged Tyra from the side "There's a first time for everything, right?"

"Hey," the Doctor huffed "Can you two stop teaming up on me?"

"You wish," Tyra laughed "Come on, Sage. Let's go and find Damon."

Sage grinned and waved her in one direction, while the Doctor, Solomon and Martha walked into another "So, how have you been since you left? You were in… Asia, right?"

"Yeah," Tyra nodded "I went to Japan for a few years before coming back here."

"And where did you meet the Doctor?" she questioned curiously "The two of you seem… close."

Tyra sighed at her words "Well, we are, I suppose. I met him around two years ago in England. Maybe a little more."

"I thought you were in Japan?" Sage frowned.

"Er…" Tyra grimaced lightly "Yeah. I was… It's – complicated. I'll explain later, alright?"

Sage raised her eyebrow "I'll hold you to that, Tyra." She stopped, pulling Tyra into one of the tents "Damon. Look who I found."

_Flashback_

_Damon narrowed his eyes on Stefan who had been talking with some of their descendants "Have you been eating the relatives again?" he asked._

_Stefan stiffened "Damon," he greeted coldly._

"_It's been a long time, brother," Damon smirked._

"_It's been almost fifty years," Stefan agreed "I'm surprised you came."_

_Damon pretended to be hurt, raising his hand to his chest "And miss the funeral of, what do you call him? Uncle Zachariah?"_

"_I see you're still mad at me," Stefan noted, seemingly not feeling guilty at all._

_That nonchalance made Damon even angrier "Why would I be mad at you, Stefan?" he hissed lowly, glaring at his younger brother "You made me become a vampire and now I walk the world alone, drinking other people's blood."_

"_Any chance you took it all out on our nephew Zachariah?"_

_Damon scoffed "If I'm not mistaken, you were the one who killed our family, remember? May father rest in peace."_

_Stefan shook his head "I'm not like that anymore, Damon."_

_Damon curled his lip "Well, congratulations, Stefan. But if you'll excuse me, I'd like to live out my eternal existence as far away from you as possible." He turned around, intent on leaving as quickly as he could._

"_Damon, wait," Stefan called out, making Damon freeze "Let's grab a drink, catch up." Damon turned around, looking at his brother silently "I've missed you, brother."_

_Damon dropped his head and sighed "Sure," he shrugged "Why not?"  
_

* * *

"_You don't seem as happy here as your drinking buddy," a voice spoke up next to Damon. He looked over blearily, seeing a petite brunette leaning against the bar with a small smirk._

"_I'm not interested," Damon shook his head, taking another drink from the bottle._

_Tyra raised her eyebrow "Yeah? Neither am I but I have heard a lot about you, Damon Salvatore."_

_The bottle was frozen halfway to his lips "How do you know who I am?"_

"_Hm," Tyra shrugged "A lot of vampires have heard that Katerina Petrova has picked a new pair of brothers."_

"_You know Katherine?" Damon breathed, looking up at the girl – vampire, he mentally corrected himself "Please, do you know how to get her out of the tomb?"_

"_No," Tyra snorted "And even if I did, I wouldn't be telling you. What I can tell you is that Katerina is crafty much to my dismay. If she really got trapped in that tomb, I would be more than a little surprised."_

_Damon looked at her for a moment, mulling over the words "Who – Who are you?"_

"_Tyra," she introduced herself and nodded to his other side where a red-haired woman had appeared "And that is Sage, a good friend of mine."_

"_What do you want with me?"_

_Tyra sent him a small smile "You looked miserable and we thought you might need a few people to talk to. I heard what you said to the other guy at the cemetery… Your brother? You're alone… Come with us and you don't have to be." She held out her hand for him "No favours, nothing. Sage and I are planning on leaving for New York by Friday. Come and find us if you want to join."_

_End Flashback_

Damon looked up and before Tyra could blink, his arms were wrapped around her "I didn't know you were back in New York, Ty-Ty."

"Stop calling me that, Day-Day," she rolled her eyes. They always reverted back to calling each other by those stupid nicknames sooner or later "And I didn't even know that I was coming back. It was a bit of a surprise. I didn't think the two of you would still be here."

Sage sat down on one of the beds "I was tired of chasing Klaus. And being around Damon and you… Honestly, I didn't have as much fun as this in centuries."

Damon tilted his head "I heard the two of you mention Klaus occasionally. Who is he?"

Tyra exchanged a glance with Sage "You don't want to find out. Trust me on that," she murmured "If you never meet him it would probably be too soon." It wasn't that she hasn't forgiven her brother yet but she knew how he could be and sadly, he tended to be an ass to most people outside of the family… Hell, even their siblings weren't spared his rants and moods.

"I actually have to agree with Tyra on that one," Sage murmured, grimacing at the thought of her brother-in-law. Not that she had seen him much over the past nine centuries but it certainly wasn't for the lack of trying on her part. The few times she had caught up to him though were very… memorable from what Tyra remembered and heard about it.

Damon blinked looking from Tyra to Sage and back "If the two of you are agreeing to this then it has to mean something…"

"It's known to happen occasionally," Tyra shook her head with a grin "I'm somewhat surprised you're here, you know." She leaned onto the younger vampire's shoulder "What with you helping the homeless and all."

"Are you joking?" Damon frowned, looking up at Tyra "Please tell me that you didn't actually mean that."

Tyra snorted "It's as if you don't know me at all," she rolled her eyes at him, sending him a genuine smile "I'm honestly happy that you're doing this. Both of you. This is something you can be proud of."

The Salvatore wrapped his arm around Tyra's waist, leaning his head onto her shoulder "I missed you with us, Tyra."

"I missed you guys too," she told him, burying her face in his hair.

Sage nudged Tyra from behind "You haven't even told him about your friends yet."

Damon looked up, tilting his head "What friends? We're your friends," he pouted "You don't need any more friends."

"Damon, your jealousy is showing," Sage shook her head "But they are… curious to say the least."

"Well, let's meet them then," Damon clapped, pulling at Tyra's arm impatiently.

Tyra followed him, slowing down on purpose. In all honesty, she had almost forgotten how different Damon had been during the first fifty years of his life as a vampire. Not that she minded. Damon was Damon whether he was nice or being an ass… He was still her friend and she loved him for who he was "He's not going to run away, you know. No need to dislocate my arm, Damon."

"He?" Was his strangled reply "Your friend is a 'he'?"

Sage grinned patting Tyra's shoulder "I wasn't going to say anything," she laughed "That's all on you."

"I hate you, Sage," she hissed, groaning when Damon picked up his speed "Damon, can you please slow down? I swear…"

He didn't stop though, instead pulling Tyra into another tent. As soon as they were a little closer, she could hear the Doctor's voice floating from it "But what does missing mean?" the Doctor questioned as the three vampires entered "Men must come and go here all the time. It's not like anyone's keeping a register."

Solomon shook his head, nodding at Sage and Damon in greeting "This is different."

"In what way?" Martha raised her eyebrow, studying Damon from the corner of her eyes. Tyra caught her gaze, tilting her head. Martha shrugged sheepishly, turning back to the actual conversation.

"Someone takes them," Solomon sighed, sitting down on a chair "At night. We hear something, someone calls out for help. By the time we get there, they're gone like they vanished into thin air…"

The Doctor hummed "And you're sure someone's taking them?"

Damon snorted "When you have nothing, you hold onto what little you have. Your knife, blanket, whatever… The people who were taken left everything. Even food sometimes, fire still burning. They're just gone."

"You haven't seen anything either?" Tyra asked him, looking from him to Sage.

They both shook their heads "No. Like Solomon said. They were already gone when we got there."

"So, the question is, who's taking them and what for?" the Doctor summed up, running his hand through his hair "It's good to see you again, Damon."

Damon frowned "I have never met you before. Are you Tyra's friend?"

The Doctor winced lightly and looked at Tyra sheepishly. She sighed, rolling her eyes for what felt like the hundredth time that day "Damon, that's the Doctor and the girl over there is Martha. Martha, I already introduced you to Sage earlier… Meet Damon."

"That still doesn't explain how he knows me already," Damon pointed out with a huff.

"That…"

"Solomon," a voice cut me off. A boy ran into the tent, panting a little "Solomon. Mister Diagoras is here."

Tyra sighed "I'll explain it later, alright?" Solomon groaned but left the tent with the others following.

* * *

On a stone close to the entrance of Hooverville was a man with a small crowd gathered in front of him "I need men," Diagoras called out "Volunteers. I've got a little work for you and you sure look like you could use the money."

"Yeah," the boy who had gotten us scoffed "What's the money?"

"A dollar a day," Diagoras shrugged.

Solomon narrowed his eyes "What's the work?"

"A little trip down the sewers. Got a tunnel collapsed needs clearing and fixing. Any takers?" Diagoras questioned, looking into the crowd.

"A dollar a day?" Solomon clarified "That's slave wage. And men don't come back up, do they?"

Diagoras barely moved a muscle "Accidents happen," he murmured.

Tyra grabbed Damon's arm when he made to move forward and shook her head as the Doctor stepped up "What do you mean? What sort of accidents?"

"You don't need work?" Diagoras questioned in faked surprised "That's fine. Anybody else?" The Doctor raised his hand "Enough with the questions."

"Oh, no, no, no," the Doctor smiled innocently "I'm volunteering. I'll go."

Martha raised her hand with a glare at the Time Lord as Tyra followed suit as well "I'll kill you for this."

"Anybody else?" Diagoras asked, his eyes lit up with smugness. The boy from before and Solomon raised their hands along with Damon. Sage had decided to stay behind to look after the rest of the Humans in the camp. The man nodded, waving at them to follow. At the entrance of the sewers, Diagoras stopped them "Turn left. Go about half a mile. Follow tunnel two seven three. Fall's right ahead of you, you can't miss it."

The boy – who had introduced himself as Frank earlier crossed his arms "And when do we get out dollar?"

"When you come back up."

"And if we don't come back up?" the Doctor demanded curiously.

Diagoras smiled self-assuredly "Then I got no one to pay."

Solomon shook his head "Don't worry, we'll be back."

"Let's hope so," Martha grumbled and made to follow the others.

The Doctor stared into Diagoras' eyes for a few more moments before turning to Tyra "Come on, Ty."

"We just got to stick together," Frank nodded, eyes darting around the sewers uncomfortably "It's easy to get lost. It's like a huge rabbit warren. You could hide an army down here."

Tyra started walking in the direction Diagoras had told them to go, Martha catching up to Frank "So what about you, Frank? You're not from around these parts, are you?"

Frank raised an eyebrow "Oh, you could talk." He shook his head "No, I'm from Tennessee born and bred."

"So how come you're here?" Martha asked.

"Oh," Frank mumbled, looking at his feet "My daddy died. Mama couldn't afford to feed us all. So, I'm the oldest, up to me to feed myself. So, I put on my coat, hitched up here on the railroads. There's a whole lot of runaways in the camp, younger than me, from all over. Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas… Solomon, Damon and Miss Sage keep a lookout for us. So, what about you and your friends? You're a long way from home."

Martha sighed "Yeah, I'm just a hitcher too."

Tyra shook her head at her "You act like that's a bad thing, Martha," she told her "You can't say it isn't exciting."

"For you maybe," Martha shot back "You have been travelling for years."

"Most of my life actually," she corrected, smiling at Frank "I was born in Virginia in the same place as Damon actually. Only my accent doesn't show it anymore."

Frank nodded "Is that how you know Damon and Miss Sage?"

"Sort of," Tyra shrugged "I mean, I have known Sage for longer. She's my sister-in-law… but I haven't seen her in too long."

The Doctor cleared his throat "So this Diagoras bloke, who is he then?"

"A couple of months ago, he was just another foreman," Solomon explained "Now, it seems like he's running most of Manhattan."

"How did he manage that then?" the Doctor blinked.

Solomon shook his head "These are strange times. A man can go from being King of the Hill to the lowest of the low overnight. It's just for some folks it works the other way around."

The Doctor opened his mouth, about to say something else, when he froze "Whoa," he breathed, his torch shining onto a luminous green jellyfish that was lying on the ground in front of us.

"Is it radioactive or something?" Martha frowned "It's gone off, whatever it is." The Doctor crouched down and picked it up "And you've got to pick it up."

Tyra laughed "We're lucky if he doesn't lick it," she told her in amusement "He tends to do that. No matter whose company he is in."

"You seem to know him pretty well," Damon remarked, not quite sure what to make of the situation. Tyra believed he wanted to be jealous but even he knew that it had been a rare thing for her to laugh and smile like she was doing now. Tyra met the two of them again just after she left her family, so it took her a while to get back to normal with everything she had going on.

"Yeah, well…"

The Doctor looked up at them "Shine your torch through it," he murmured, studying the jellyfish thing curiously "Composite organic matter. Martha? Medical opinion?"

Martha shrugged "It's not human. I know that."

Damon let out a strangled sound, grabbing Tyra's arm tightly "They know?" he hissed, pulling her away from the group and a little further down the corridor.

"Actually… It's not our kind of non-human they're talking about," she told him.

"Then what?" Damon blinked in confusion.

Tyra looked up at him seriously "Aliens."

"Aliens?" Damon practically shrieked and had we been in another situation, Tyra would have probably made fun of him. Oh, who was she kidding? This would be the perfect blackmail to use against him whenever she saw him next. At least it did explain why he took everything rather well when the Doctor picked him up the last time "There are aliens?"

Tyra raised her eyebrow "Says one vampire to the other."

"She's got a point," Martha pointed out, walking over to them. Then she jerked her head around "But so does he…"

"What?" Tyra frowned.

Martha hummed "Oh, the Doctor just said that we're around half a mile in already and there's no sign of a collapse. I thought girls were adept in multi-tasking. It seems as if that ability has gotten past you, Tyra."

"Oh, haha," she rolled her eyes "No my fault that Damon was shrieking around."

"I do not shriek," Damon grumbled, crossing his arms.

Tyra shot him a look "Yes, yes, you do."

Before he could complain more, the other walked up to us "Come on, let's keep going for a bit more."

* * *

Another fifteen minutes later, Solomon shook his head "We're well beyond half a mile. There is no collapse, nothing."

"That Diagoras bloke, was he lying?" Martha asked.

"Looks like it," the Doctor nodded.

Frank tilted his head "So why'd he want people to come down here?"

"We're not alone," Damon breathed into Tyra's ear.

Tyra closed her eyes for a moment and nodded "I was thinking the exact same thing…"

"Solomon," the Doctor gestured "I think it's time you took the others back. I'll be much quicker on my own."

Just as he said that the squeals became louder, echoing around them "What the hell was that?" Solomon demanded.

"Hello?" Frank called out.

Martha grabbed his arm "Shush."

"What if it's one of the folk gone missing?" Frank questioned "You'd be scared and half-mad down here on your own."

"I doubt they would sound a much like a pig as they do now," Damon pointed out, his eyes narrowed. By now, his mind was completely focussed on the situation at hand.

The Doctor turned around to face Frank "Do you think they're still alive?"

"Heck," Frank shrugged "We ain't seen no bodies down here. Maybe they just got lost."

"There doesn't have to be a body for them to be dead, Frank," Tyra told him seriously as footsteps and squeals came closer and closer to where they were.

Solomon took a couple of steps back "I know I never heard nobody make a sound like that."

Frank glanced around "Where's it coming from? Sounds like there's more than one of them."

"This way," the Doctor gestured.

Tyra coughed "Doc?" When he stopped to look at Tyra, she pointed into the other direction. They had been standing by a crossroads with four ways going off and he was about to walk down the wrong one.

Solomon shone his torch down the corridor Tyra had pointed to, the light of the torch catching a crouched figure in a corner "Who are you?" the older man called out.

"Are you lost?" Frank added, taking a step forward "Can you understand me? I've been thinking about folk lost down…"

The Doctor stopped him from getting any closer "It's alright, Frank. Just stay back. Let me have a look…" He kept his hand held out, stopping us from advancing "He's got a point, though, my mate Frank. I'd hate to be stuck down here on my own. We know the way out. Daylight. If you come with us…" He froze, staring at the figure "Oh, but what are you?"

Solomon gasped and even Damon flinched back a little "Is that – er – some kind of carnival mask?"

The Doctor shook his head with a sigh "No, it's real. I'm sorry… Now listen to me. I promise I can help. Who did this to you?"

Damon grabbed a hold of Tyra's arm again "There are more coming and quickly. What do we do?"

"Doctor?" Martha called out "I think you'd better get back here." The pigmen came into sighed "Doctor."

The Doctor glanced up, his gaze on the pigmen "Actually, good point." He stumbled back towards us, the group of pigs following.

"They're following you," Martha pointed out.

"Yeah," the Doctor breathed, rolling his eyes "I noticed that, thanks. Well then, Ty, Martha, Frank, Solomon, Damon…" He whirled around "Eh… Basically, run."

The pigmen chased them back to the junction from earlier "Where are we going?" Martha called out.

"This way." The Doctor whipped his head around, spying the ladder down a side passage "It's a ladder. Come on!" He used his sonic screwdriver to open the cover at the top.

Damon and Frank stayed behind to ward off the pigmen as Martha and Tyra climbed up the ladder "Damon?" Tyra called out from the top of the ladder.

"Frank," Solomon shouted after Tyra "Frank. Come on, Frank."

Damon was about to make sure that Frank got up onto the ladder but the younger man shook his head, shoving Damon towards the ladder "Go," he said "You have been taking care of us for a while. Time that I repay that favour."

Damon quickly climbed the ladder with Frank right behind him. One of the pigmen grabbed Frank's leg, starting to pull him down. The Doctor reached past Damon, trying to grab Frank's hand "I've got you," he murmured "Come on…" Tyra stepped forward quickly, pulling Damon the rest of the way up, while simultaneously reaching for Frank. She was too late though because just before her hand touched his, he was pulled down.

"Frank," Solomon cried out.

The Doctor stared down in horror "No."

"I'm sorry," Damon breathed, staring down into the hole for a moment before Solomon slammed it shut "I should have done something… I could have done something."

Solomon grasped his shoulder as Tyra wrapped her arms around her friend's middle "It's not your fault, Damon. We can't go after him."

The Doctor shook his head "We've got to go back down. We can't just leave him."

"No," Solomon hissed sharply "I'm not losing anybody else. Those creatures were from Hell. From Hell itself. If we go after them, they'll take us all. There is nothing we can do. I'm sorry."

All of a sudden a young woman stepped out of the shadows, pointing a revolver at the group. Tyra blinked in surprise… Either she had been abnormally quiet or she had just been too focussed on Damon to hear her "Alright then," she started "Put them up. Hands in the air and no funny business. Now tell me, you schmucks, what have you done with Laszlo?"

Martha frowned at her "Who's Laszlo?"

The young woman sighed, lowering the gun a little, still keeping it pointed in our direction though "Laszlo's my boyfriend," she explained quietly "Or was my boyfriend until he disappeared two weeks ago. No letter, no goodbye, no nothing. And I'm not stupid. I know some guys are just pigs but not my Laszlo. I mean, what kind of guy asks you to meet his mother before he vamooses?"

"Yeah," the Doctor mumbled, eyeing the gun warily "It might… might just help if you put that down."

The woman frowned "Huh? Oh, sure." She glanced down at her hands and chucked the revolver onto the table without any care. She rolled her eyes as most of our group jumped "Oh, come on. It's not real. It's just a prop. It was either that or a spear."

Tyra grinned lightly "Damn… You should have chosen the spear," Tyra told her "That would have been awesome."

"It really would have been," Damon agreed, his arm wrapped around Tyra's shoulders now.

Martha looked at the blonde woman "What do you think happened to Laszlo?"

"I wish I knew," she mumbled "One minute he's there, the next, zip… Vanished."

"Listen," the Doctor started "Er… What's your name?"

"Tallulah," she introduced herself.

The Doctor nodded "Tallulah…"

"Three Ls and an H," Tallulah added.

"Right," the Doctor blinked "We can try to find Laszlo but he's not the only one. There are people disappearing every night."

"And there are creatures," Solomon added "Such creatures."

Tallulah tilted her head "What do you mean, creatures?"

"Look," the Doctor sighed "Listen, just trust me. Everyone is in danger. I need to find out what this is." With those words, he pulled out the jellyfish thing from his coat pocket "Because then I'll know exactly what we're fighting."

"Yuck," Tallulah breathed.

Tyra stared at the Doctor in slight disgust "Are you kidding me? You had that in your coat pocket?" She shook her head "Okay, it's official. I'm never touching that thing ever again… Unless you get that cleaned."

"Yeah, yeah," he waved off, his mind already on solving the mystery of the weird jellyfish.

Tyra hummed to herself "That would make a good book title," she mumbled.

"What would make a good book title?" Damon questioned from behind her.

Tyra jumped, whirling around "Really? Was that really necessary?" she huffed as he started laughing "As for your question… 'Mystery of the weird jellyfish' would make a good book title, don't you think?"

"That actually sounds pretty good," Damon nodded "Any chance you'll write it?"

"Me?" she snorted "Right… Of course."

Damon tugged at her hand and practically shoved her down on one of the chairs in the theatre "Start talking."

"What?" Tyra frowned.

"You said you would tell me about aliens," Damon pointed out "Start talking. Now. What were those things down in the sewers? Were they aliens?"

Tyra sighed, leaning her head back against the back of the seat "Right that… I don't know what those things were… I really don't," she told him "But I don't think they're alien. Or at least not naturally."

"Not naturally?" Damon frowned "Ty, what the hell is going on?"

"Look, this is a bit… different," Tyra told him "The Doctor…"

Damon cut me off "Yeah, about that. I counted heartbeats and there was one too many every time."

"He has two heart," she murmured "And yes. He's an alien."

"What… Tyra? How did you meet him?"

Tyra leaned forwards, her elbows resting on her knees and buried her hands in her hair "You wouldn't believe me if I told you, Damon."

"Try me. I think I'll believe almost everything right now," he huffed, throwing himself down on the chair next to her.

"Alright then," Tyra sighed "I met the Doctor in 2005. Like… way in the future and we travelled back from 2007 to get here."

Damon froze, opening and closing his mouth a few times "W… Wait. What?"

"Time travel," Tyra explained "I know this is unbelievable – More than that but… I don't know. I'm not lying."

"I – I'm not sure if that makes me as mad as you but I actually believe you," Damon snorted "You have never lied to me, Tyra and I doubt you'd start now."

She relaxed her shoulders "Honestly? I wasn't sure how you'd take it. It is more than a little unbelievable after all."

"True," Damon nodded "But then again… What happened earlier wasn't exactly believable either."

Tyra grinned "It doesn't even rank on the scale of weird that I've seen in the last two years."

"Speaking of last two years," Damon tilted his head "If you're from 2007, then where's your other self?"

"Japan," she answered "I'm probably about to decide to come back and meet up with you and Sage. When that happens, don't tell me about this."

Damon saluted jokingly "Alright then. So, any cool aliens or other things you can tell me about?"

Tyra hummed "Well, I met Shakespeare and witches which was pretty cool… Queen Victoria and a werewolf… Hm, what else can I tell you about? Dickens and ghosts at Christmas. Quite a few things in the future. Other planets and things like that."

"That sounds pretty cool," Damon remarked "I would love to see it sometime."

Tyra shot him a knowing look "Maybe some time."

"Ha," the Doctor exclaimed from somewhere to our right.

Tyra raised her eyebrow at Damon and shrugged "Wanna see what he's up to now?"

"Sure," Damon hummed, getting up.

"That's it," the Doctor mumbled, aiming a spotlight at the jellyfish thing "We need to heat you up…"

Tyra glanced over his shoulder and wrinkled her nose "That looks really gross."

"Shush," he muttered, examining the thing that is strapped into whatever device he built from the scrap.

* * *

Around half an hour later, the theatre started filling up with people and the lights dimmed as they got ready to see the show Tallulah was the star of. The Doctor looked up from the jellyfish and over his shoulder at Damon and Tyra. They had started to play a rather complicated game that consisted of hand gestures. Tyra had learned it a while ago and was teaching Damon "This is artificial."

"_Ladies and gentlemen… The Laurenzi dancing devils with Heaven and Hell,_" a man's voice announced as the curtains were drawn back, revealing the dancers on stage.

"What does that mean?" Damon asked, leaning forward curiously.

The Doctor mumbled something to himself that Tyra didn't understand before he spoke up "Genetically engineered. Whoever this is… oh, you are clever." He pulled out a stethoscope, listening to the jellyfish "Fundamental DNA type four six seven dash nine eight nine." The Doctor stared into space "Nine eight nine… Hold on, that means planet of origin… Skaro."

"Skaro?" she breathed "How? Wait, Skaro was the planet the Daleks came from, right?"

"Yes," the Doctor nodded, his eyes dark "Oh, this is bad. Why can't they just die already?"

Damon looked from her to the Doctor and back "What are you two talking about?"

"Martha," the Doctor exclaimed, running off to find the other girl.

Tyra gazed after him for a moment before following "Daleks are… nothing you ever want to meet," she explained to the younger vampire while jogging after the Doctor "They might look ridiculous but being shot by them hurts like hell. It's not deadly to vampires but it hurts."

"Where is she?" the Doctor demanded, looking at the dancers "Where's Martha?"

Tallulah shrugged "I don't know," she shook her head "She ran off the stage."

Tyra frowned, listening to something coming from the direction of the Props room we were in earlier "Doctor, I think she's over there." She pointed down the corridor just as a scream sounded.

"Martha," the Doctor exclaimed, sprinting off just behind Tyra.

There was nothing in the room, not even the lid looked displaced or anything. The Doctor grabbed his coat, pulling it on "Where are you going?" Tallulah huffed.

"They've taken her," the Time Lord explained without explaining.

"Who's taken her?" Tallulah muttered "What're you doing?"

Tyra turned around to face Damon "Damon, can you go back to Hooverville and tell Sage everything? Help her protect the people."

"Are you sure?" he whispered in concern.

"I'm a big kid," she smiled "I can protect myself and them. Those people back there can't." The Doctor gestured for Tyra to climb down before him. She jumped down the last few rungs, making sure the air is clear before calling up to him quietly.

From where Tyra was standing in the sewers, she heard Tallulah's huff "I said, what the hell are you doing, crazy guy?"

"No, no, no, no, no way," the Doctor shook his head harshly when the showgirl climbed down after them "You're not coming."

"Tell me what's going on," Tallulah demanded.

The Doctor clenched his eyes shut for a moment "There's nothing you can do. Go back."

"Look," Tallulah sighed "Whoever's taken Martha, they could've taken Laszlo, couldn't they?"

Tyra looked down the corridors, listening for any noise "It's not safe down here," Tyra told Tallulah "Please, just go back."

"That's my problem," Tallulah told Tyra, walking down the tunnel "Come on. Which way?"

The Doctor and Tyra exchanged a look before she shrugged, causing him to sigh "This way." Tallulah came back, walking along the corridor next to Tyra.

Tallulah glanced over at Tyra and the Doctor curiously "When you say, they've taken her, who's they exactly? And who are you anyway? I never asked."

Tyra hushed her sharply when she heard something "Doctor… I don't want to panic you or anything but… This doesn't sound good."

The Doctor tilted his head, listening intently. He paled lightly "No…"

"What's wrong?" Tallulah asked, not lowering her voice at all.

"Shush, shush, shush, shush." The Doctor pulled her closer to the sewer wall, grabbing Tyra's hand with his other. From her place directly by the corner, Tyra could see the shadow of a Dalek cast on the wall ahead of us.

Tallulah raised her eyebrow at them "I mean, the two of you are handsome and all…"

The Doctor pressed his hand over her mouth and dragged both of the girls back into a service alcove. Tallulah's eyes widened as the Dalek whirred past "No, no, no, no," he mumbled under his breath. Tyra squeezed his hand tightly "They survived. They always survive while I lose everything."

"You won't lose me," she told him quietly "I'll make sure of that."

He glared lightly "How can you be so sure, huh? They might not be able to kill you but…"

"But nothing," Tyra cut him off and glanced at Tallulah "Come on, let's find out what they're planning this time."

"That metal thing?" Tallulah breathed, staring down the corridor the Dalek had disappeared down "What was that?"

The Doctor swallowed heavily "It's called a Dalek. And it's not just metal, it's alive."

"You're kidding me," Tallulah blinked, laughing nervously.

"Does it look like I'm kidding?" the Doctor stared at her seriously, his eyes a lot darker than they normally were "Inside that shell is a creature born to hate, whose only thought is to destroy everything and everyone that isn't a Dalek too. It won't stop until it's killed every human being alive."

Tallulah swallowed heavily "But if it's not a human being, that kind of implies it's from outer space." When neither the Doctor nor Tyra laughed, she sighed "Yet again, that's a no with the kidding. Boy… Well, what's it doing in New York?"

The Doctor shook his head at her "Every second you're down here, you're in danger. Tyra… Will you take her back to the theatre?"

"What about you?" Tyra asked worriedly "I'm not leaving you to run into this on your own."

"Just do as I say and stay with her," he snapped, his mind already on what the Daleks could be planning.

Tyra reared back a little in surprise "You don't get to talk to me like that, Doctor."

The Doctor closed his eyes for a moment, grasping Tyra's shoulders tightly "I don't want you in the middle of this, Ty. Please… Just go and be safe."

"No," she told him firmly "I let you go on your own on New Earth. I held back from mentioning it but I'm sick of it. You don't have to protect me. Like I told Damon… I can protect myself."

At that moment, a pigman rounded the corner, causing Tallulah to let out a shrill scream. The young woman jumped back, hiding behind Tyra "Where's Martha?" the Doctor demanded "What have you done with her? What have you done with Martha?"

"I didn't take her," the pigman shook his head.

"Can you remember your name?" the Doctor frowned, noticing something different about this one.

The pigman turned its head away from them "Don't look at me."

Tallulah peaked around Tyra "Do you know where she is?" she piped up.

"Stay back," the pigman hissed when the Doctor stepped closer "Don't look at me."

"What happened to you?" the Doctor questioned, looking at the man with sorrow.

The pigman grimaced "They made me a monster."

"Who did?"

"The Masters," the pigman mumbled.

The Doctor nodded "The Daleks. Why?"

"They needed slaves," the man pointed out, still pressing himself back into the shadows "They needed slaves to steal more people so they created us. Part animal, part human. I escaped before they got my mind but it was still too late."

Tyra looked at him, her head tilted, listening to his heart stuttering occasionally "Martha. You know what happened to her, don't you?"

"They took her," the pigman explained "It's my fault. She was following me."

Tallulah gasped "Were you in the theatre?"

"I never," the man denied quickly before letting out a sigh "Yes."

"Why?" Tallulah frowned, carefully stepping closer to the shadow "Why were you there?"

The pigman sighed "I never wanted you to see me like this."

"Why me?" Tallulah puzzled "What I got to do with this? Were you following me? Is that why you were there?"

Tyra heard a deep inhale before the pigman turned around "Yes."

"Who are you?" Tallulah questioned, squinting at the features she could make out.

"I was lonely," the man admitted "I'm sorry."

Tallulah's breathing hitched "No, wait," she stopped him "Let me look at you. Laszlo? My Laszlo? Oh, what have they done to you?"

"I'm sorry," Laszlo choked "So sorry."

The Doctor who had watched the incident silently "Laszlo, can you show me where they are?"

"They'll kill you," Laszlo pointed out.

The Doctor shook his head "If I don't stop them, they'll kill everyone."

Laszlo looked at him for a moment before he nodded "Then follow me."

* * *

Even before Laszlo slowed down, Tyra could hear Martha's whisper a little further in "I don't know. I've got a nasty feeling we're being kept in the larder."

"What are they doing?" Frank whispered as soon as they stopped. Tyra leaned around the Doctor to peak at the line of scared humans who were being guarded by some other pigmen who were beginning to shift nervously "What's wrong? What's wrong?"

"Silence," the Dalek demanded "Silence." Laszlo whimpered quietly, pressing himself against the wall next to us.

Martha gasped quietly "What the hell is that?"

"You will form a line," the Dalek waved around its whisk "Move. Move."

"Just do what it says," Martha told the frightened humans "Everyone, okay? Just obey."

The Dalek apparently agreed "The female is wise. Obey." He was quiet for a moment before continuing "These are strong specimens. They will help the Dalek cause."

Martha frowned "Dalek?"

"What is the status of the Final Experiment?" the Dalek asked an unseen third party "… Then I will extract prisoners for selection." One of the pigmen dragged an older man forward "Intelligence scan, initiate…. Reading brain waves. Low intelligence."

The man huffed "You calling me stupid?"

"Silence," the Dalek hissed, pulling its plunger back "This one will become a pig slave. Next."

"No," the man cried out "Let go of me. I'm not becoming one of them. No! No." As the man was dragged away, the Dalek continued scanning the other people.

Laszlo turned to them "They're divided into two groups. High intelligence and low intelligence. The low intelligence are taken to become pig slaves like me."

"Well, that's not fair," Tallulah cried out.

"Shush," the Doctor hushed her immediately.

Tallulah grimaced apologetically "You're the smartest guy I ever dated."

The Doctor tilted his head "What about the others?"

"They're taken to the laboratory," Laszlo explained.

"Why?" the Doctor asked "What for?"

Laszlo shrugged "I don't know. The Masters only call it Final Experiment."

By then, the Dalek had reached Frank and Martha "Superior intelligence." It turned to Martha "Intelligence scan, initiate. Superior intelligence. This one will become part of the Final Experiment."

"You can't just experiment on people," Martha cried out "It's insane. It's inhuman."

"We are not human," the Dalek pointed out "Prisoners of high intelligence will be taken to the transgenic laboratory."

The Doctor grabbed Tyra's arm "Look out, they're moving."

Laszlo started to lead Tallulah away "Doctor. Doctor, quickly."

"We're not coming. I have an idea… You two go," he murmured.

Tallulah tugged on her boyfriend's arm "Laszlo, come on."

Laszlo sighed "Can you remember the way?"

"Yeah," Tallulah nodded "I think so."

"Then go," Laszlo pushed her lightly "Please."

"But Laszlo, you got to come with me."

Laszlo smiled sadly "Where would I go? Tallulah, I'm begging you. Save yourself. Just run. Just go. Go." With a lingering glance, Tallulah left, leaving Laszlo, the Doctor and Tyra to sneak into the line of humans who were being led away.

"Just keep walking," the Doctor murmured to Martha when they reached her.

Martha breathed a sigh of relief "Oh, I'm so glad to see you two."

"Yeah, well," the Time Lord shrugged "You can kiss me later…" He glanced to Tyra out of the corner of his eyes "Or… Maybe not."

* * *

As soon as they reached the Dalek laboratory, the Dalek that led them, turned to another one "Report."

"Dalek Sec is in the final stage of evolution," the other Dalek pointed out. Tyra squinted at them and tried to remember their names since Tyra was pretty sure they were the ones from Canary Wharf but honestly… she couldn't remember.

"Scan him," one of them demanded "Prepare for birth."

The Doctor raised his eyebrow "Evolution?"

Martha nodded to the Black Dalek "What's wrong with old Charlie boy over there?"

"Ask them," the Doctor told her.

"What, me?" Martha hissed, her eyes widening "Why not Tyra? Or you?"

The Doctor leaned down "I don't exactly want to get noticed and they know Tyra as well. Ask them what's going on." He turned to her "Keep your head down, alright?"

Tyra just nodded, watching him duck out of sight as Martha stepped forward shakily "Daleks, I demand to be told. What is this Final Experiment? Report."

"You will bear witness," one of the bronze Daleks told her.

"To what?"

"This is the dawn of a new age," the Dalek exclaimed.

Martha caught Tyra's eye and she shrugged, just as confused as her "What does that mean?"

"We are the only four Daleks in existence, so the species must evolve a life outside the shell. The Children of Skaro must walk again," the same Dalek pointed out.

By then Sec's shell had stopped smoking and the light in its eyestalk went out. The casing opened and a biped struggled out. As the casing was closing, the creature straightened up, its hands over his head.

Martha reached out to grab Tyra's hand "What is it?"

"I wish I knew," Tyra breathed, staring at what should have been Dalek Sec.

The creature had one eye and tentacles like a Dalek blob but it was wearing a suit… Diagoras' suit if she wasn't mistaken "I am a human Dalek," Sec gasped, breathing deeply "I am your future."


	21. Evolution of the Daleks

"These humans will become like me. Prepare them for hybridisation," Sec demanded.

Tyra stared at the… thing with an open mouth, completely forgetting to keep her head down. What in the world did Sec do? She was still looking in the Daleks' direction when the pigmen grabbed a hold of all of them, trying to herd them away.

Martha started fighting "Leave me alone," she hissed "Don't you dare." Her head snapped over to me "T…"

She was cut off by music playing "What is that sound?" Sec demanded, looking around in confusion.

"Ah, well," the Doctor popped up from behind a desk "Now, that would be me." He placed the radio down by a Bunsen burner, walking up to Sec with Tyra in tow "Hello. Surprise. Boo. Et cetera."

The Hybrid thing narrowed his eyes "Doctor," he greeted before his gaze travelled to Tyra "And your Companion. What was her name again?"

"How did you end up in 1930?" the Doctor questioned, taking a small step in front of Tyra when the other Daleks started to point their whisks at them.

"Emergency temporal shift," Dalek Sec replied.

The Doctor raised his eyebrows "Oh, that must have roasted up your power cells, huh?" He shook his head in mock disappointment "Time was, four Daleks could have conquered the world but instead, you're sulking away, hidden in the dark, experimenting. All of which results in you."

"Doctor?" Tyra spoke up quietly, her voice still echoing around the silent room "Maybe it's not the best idea to taunt Daleks. You tried that before and it didn't turn out too well."

Sec's eyes were once again on Tyra "I am a Dalek in human form."

"What does it feel like?" the Time Lord squinted "You can talk to me, Dalek Sec. It is Dalek Sec, isn't it? That's your name? You've got a name and a mind of your own. Tell me what you're thinking right now."

Tyra stepped back a little, closer to Martha. When it came to it, she would still be able to get the Doctor out of the way fast enough but from the way Martha grabbed her arm in a bruising hold, she needed the comfort "What is going on?" she hissed as Dalek Sec started spouting off what he thought 'humanity' meant.

"I… I don't know," Tyra mumbled, her eyes trailing from one Dalek to the next "They were at Canary Wharf."

Martha gasped "So that's what they meant about escaping slaughter?" Tyra nodded quietly.

"What is the purpose of that device?" one of the Daleks demanded as the Doctor picked up the radio again.

"Well, exactly," the Doctor rolled his eyes "It plays music. What's the point of that? Oh, with music, you can dance to it, sing with it, fall in love to it." He whirled around "Unless you're a Dalek of course. Then it's all just noise." He aimed his sonic at the radio, causing it to emit a shrill shriek. Tyra gasped, clutching her hands over her ears, barely noticing Dalek Sec and the pigmen reacting similarly. The Doctor wrapped his arm around Tyra's waist, practically carrying her out of the room "Run," he whispered.

The prisoners escaped as quickly as they could. After one last look back, the Doctor ushered Tyra out of the lab. Now that the noise was gone, she breathed a silent sigh of relief, hitting the Doctor's chest in annoyance "Do you know how annoying that is when you do things like that?"

"It's not my fault that your ears are too sensitive," the Doctor grumbled "Plus, it was the only thing I could think of."

"Yeah, right," she snorted, shaking her head.

When the humans in front of them stopped at an intersection, the Doctor barrelled past them "Come on. Move, move, move." He led them all to where Tallulah was standing around, looking completely lost "And you, Tallulah. Run."

"What's happened to Laszlo?" she demanded, craning her neck to check whether she could see him anywhere.

Tyra grabbed her hand "He's fine. Helping us. I promise you, Tallulah."

The Doctor gestured to a ladder "Come on. Everyone up. Come on, hurry."

* * *

They came out close to Hooverville, near where they had gone down originally, so their group made the short trek back to where Solomon was already waiting with Sage and Damon. Martha and Tallulah sat down on some crates that were around a fire, while Tyra sank down on the crate next to the one Martha was on with Damon and Sage leaning on either side of her. Her eyes were glued to the Doctor and Solomon talking a few feet away "These Daleks," the older man started, sounding out the word "They sound like the stuff of nightmares. And they want to breed?"

"They're splicing themselves onto human bodies," the Doctor nodded "And if I'm right, they've got a farm of breeding stock right here in Hooverville. You've got to get everyone out."

Solomon scoffed "Hooverville's the lowest place a man can fall. There's nowhere else to go."

"I'm sorry, Solomon," the Doctor sighed "You've got to scatter. Go anywhere. Down to the railroads, travel across state. Just get out of New York."

"There's got to be a way to reason with these things," Solomon argued.

Tyra snorted "Good luck with that."

"There's not a chance," Martha agreed.

"You ain't seen them, boss," Frank added, looking a little worse for the wear.

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair "Daleks are bad enough at any time but right now they're vulnerable. That makes them more dangerous than ever."

Tyra jumped at the shrill sound of a whistle "They're coming," one of the watchers yelled "They're coming."

Solomon straightened in alarm "A sentry. He must have seen something."

Said sentry came running towards them in a panic "They're here. I've seen them. Monsters. They're monsters."

"It's started," the Doctor murmured grimly.

Solomon turned around "We're under attack. Everyone to arms." Rifles were handed out and as everyone got into position, Tyra exchanged a look with Sage and Damon, nodding at them. They situated themselves in front of the humans, ready to defend them if necessary. Just after they had gotten back from the sewers, she had a quick talk with her friends, making sure they were up to date. It had been easier than expected since Damon had filled Sage in on everything Tyra had told him in the theatre.

"I'm ready, boss, but all of you…" Frank looked around at some of the people who were standing around unsurely "Find a weapon. Use anything."

"Come back," Solomon shouted when a few of the men ran off "We've got to stick together. It's not safe out there. Come back."

That's when the pigmen started attacking, grabbing everyone they could get their hands on "We need to get out of the park," Martha exclaimed.

"We can't," the Doctor murmured grimly "They're on all sides. They're driving people back towards us."

Tallulah exhaled shakily "We're trapped."

"Then we stand together," Solomon pointed out in determination "Gather around. Everyone come to me. You there, Jethro, Harry, Seamus, stay together." The armed men formed a circle around the women by the campfire with Tyra, Damon and Sage just behind them "They can't take all of us."

"If we can just hold them off till daylight," Martha shook her head as the shooting started.

The Doctor glanced over at her "Oh, Martha, they're just the foot soldiers."

"Damon," Tyra called out when she saw one of the Daleks flying towards them. She gestured for him to head back towards the group around the Doctor, whispering urgently "Protect them at all costs."

Sage looked up at the pepper pot in hesitation "Can they… Do they kill us?"

"Well, I can't promise," Tyra hesitated "But I'm still alive and got shot by them before." Damon looked at her for a moment before he nodded, heading to the other group nearby.

"Oh, my God," Martha breathed, her eyes wide.

Solomon blinked "What in this world is…?"

"It's the devil," the sentry from earlier cried out "A devil in the sky. God save us all. It's damnation."

"Oh yeah?" Frank pressed out through gritted teeth "We'll see about that." He started shooting at the Dalek, not even stopping when the bullets bounced off with a useless clang.

The Doctor grabbed his arm as Tyra joined Damon, Sage still in place. The pigmen had stopped attacking for now "That's not going to work," the Doctor whispered.

"There's more than one of them," Martha pointed out as a second Dalek swooped in. Both pepper pots started firing, blowing up the tents with whoever was hiding in there.

"The humans will surrender," one of the Daleks ordered.

"Leave them alone," the Doctor called out, stepping forward. Tyra made a noise in the back of my throat. Did he have a death wish? "They've done nothing to you." Solomon stepped forward, causing the Doctor's head to snap to him "No, Solomon. Stay back."

Solomon swallowed "I'm told that I'm addressing the Daleks. Is that right?" He took a deep breath "From what I hear, you're outcasts too."

"Solomon, don't."

"Doctor," he sighed "This is my township. You will respect my authority. Just let me try." He turned back to the flying pepper pots "Daleks, ain't we all the same? Underneath, ain't we all kin?" Solomon put down his rifle "Right. See, I've just discovered this past day, God's universe is a thousand times the size I thought it was. And that scares me. Oh yeah, terrifies me right down to the bone. But surely it's got to give me hope. Hope that maybe together we can make a better tomorrow. So, I beg you know, if you have any compassion in your hearts, then you'll meet with us and stop this fight. Well?" He stared at them "What do you say?"

The Dalek mustered the man for a short moment before its whisk twitched "Exterminate."

Before Tyra could move, Damon had already tackled Solomon out of the way, taking the burst of energy into the back. Damon cried out in pain and slumped to the ground, dead "Damon," Sage and Tyra gasped at the same time. Tyra slid to her knees next to her dead friend, glaring up at the Daleks. Hopefully, he would be alright but she knew how much it hurt to die by Dalek death ray…

"They killed him," Martha breathed "They just shot him on the spot."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes, catching Tyra's gaze for a moment "Daleks. Alright, so it's my turn then. Kill me. Kill me if it'll stop you attacking these people."

Tyra jumped forward, jerking him back by the arm "What the hell are you doing?" He just stared at her. The look in his eyes made her back off. She knew that look all too well. While she might have hated it, she knew how he was feeling about the Daleks and the only thing she could do was to stop him from actually getting himself killed, so she let him go but was ready to jump in, nevertheless.

"I will be the destroyer of our greatest enemy," the Dalek exclaimed gleefully.

"Then do it," the Doctor shouted, holding out his arms "Do it. Just do it. Do it."

The Dalek pointed the gun at the Doctor "Exterminate." It was about to shoot when it stopped "I do not understand. It is the Doctor…" Another quick pause that made Tyra frown. What were they doing? "The urge to kill is too strong…" The Dalek shot in the air before seemingly deflating "I obey."

"What's going on?" the Doctor frowned in confusion.

"You will follow," the Dalek commanded, looking down at the Doctor.

Martha surged forward "No. You can't go. Tell him, Tyra."

"I've got to," the Doctor murmured, looking from Martha to Tyra where his gaze lingered, pleading with her to understand "The Daleks just changed their minds. Daleks never change their minds. Tyra… I know that you're not happy about this but you know that I have to go."

Tyra closed her eyes, clenching her teeth in displeasure "At least let me come with you."

"I need you up here…"

"What?" Martha huffed "To die?"

The Doctor looked over his shoulder "One condition. If I come with you, you spare the lives of everyone here. Do you hear me?"

"Humans will be spared. Doctor, follow." The Dalek turned around, making to leave.

"Are you sure that I shouldn't come with you?" Tyra questioned.

The Doctor placed his hand on Tyra's shoulder, the other one disappearing into his pocket "Stay here with Martha. You two can help the people here. Oh, and cam I just say… Thank you. For everything." He slipped the wallet with his psychic paper into her hand and pressed a short but sweet kiss to her lips before following the Dalek "I'm sorry."

Tyra blinked in confusion at his words. This wasn't right… Was it? "What was that?"

"Something's wrong," Martha nodded, glancing down at Tyra's hands "What's that?"

"Psychic paper," she murmured, showing it to her "But what…" She was about to reach out for the thing that was between the pages of the wallet, frowning in confusion when a groan came from behind them. Damon let out another groan, squinting his eyes open "Are you alright?" Tyra questioned, once again kneeling down next to him, the psychic paper and the mysterious object forgotten for now.

Damon huffed "Do I look alright to you?"

"Don't be a baby," she smiled lightly, helping him up "You're alive, aren't you?"

"Have you ever died by…?"

Tyra looked him in the eyes "Dalek? Yes. I just told you earlier, didn't I? It's not a fun experience as I'm sure you're aware."

"Tyra?" Martha asked as she walked over, the psychic paper still in her hand "Do you know what he wanted you to do with this? And here." She held out a delicate necklace "I think he wanted you to have this." Tyra reached out to take it from her, breath catching in her throat. The pendant's background was a Tardis blue galaxy type with white writing on it. Her fingers trailed over the circular Gallifreyan reverently. She didn't know what it said but the necklace was the most beautiful she had seen.

Tallulah frowned "What's that?"

"It gets you into places," Martha pointed out "Buildings and things. But… where? He must have wanted us to go somewhere, right?"

Tyra hummed before straightening, the necklace clutched in her hand "Empire State Building," she exclaimed.

Martha's eyes widened "I remember… The Daleks mentioned an energy conductor."

"What does that mean?" Sage frowned in confusion. She looked a little frustrated with the situation since it wasn't often that she didn't know what was going on and from what Tyra remembered she got annoyed quickly.

Martha sighed "I don't know. Maybe like a lightning conductor or… Dalekanium." Her head snapped around to me "They said the Dalekanium was in place."

"Let's go," Tyra murmured, fastening the necklace around her neck quickly.

Martha tilted her head "Go where?" She took a step closer, squinting at the pendant "That's beautiful. What does it say?"

Tyra shook her head "I don't know. It's circular Gallifreyan though." She looked to the side where the Empire State Building was being built "As for where we're going, I told you Empire State Building. It's the highest point… and it's still being built. What better place to hide something like this?" Tyra pointed out.

"Frank," Martha called out, seeing Frank talking to Solomon quietly. Solomon was still pretty shaken up by almost dying.

Frank headed over to them "Is everything alright?"

"Mister Diagoras…" Tyra started before pointing to the Empire State Building behind them "Did he have anything to do with building this?"

"Yes," he nodded "Why?"

"We should go then," Martha murmured, her voice holding a hint of excitement. On the way there, she couldn't help babbling about how excited she was to be going to the Empire State Building "I always wanted to go to the Empire State." She looked around the service lift we were standing in "Never imagined it quite like this, though."

Frank looked up "Where are we headed anyway?"

"The top," Tyra murmured, poking Damon questioningly. The whole way here Damon had been a little hunched while walking but his soreness seemed to have disappeared enough for him to straighten again. Sage had once again stayed at the camp, opting to help Solomon with the injured people. She had never been one to join in the crazy schemes that Kol or Tyra had planned, so much like Finn in that aspect that they had fit together so well "We're looking for something that has to be pretty much at the top."

Tallulah hummed, jabbing her finger downwards "How come those guys just let us through?" She reached out for the wallet in Tyra's hands "How's that thing work."

"It's called psychic paper," Martha explained "Shows them whatever we want them to think. According to this, we're… Really, Tyra?"

She looked at her innocently "Why not? It worked, didn't it?"

"You spent too much time with the Doctor," Martha groaned, shaking her head in exasperation.

"What's it say?" Tallulah questioned, trying to peak over Martha's shoulder.

Martha snapped the wallet close, handing it back "Nothing. It's… nothing."

"That's unfair," Tallulah huffed.

Damon tilted his head "What did it say?" he asked lowly.

Tyra grinned mischievously "Not telling."

"Oh, come on, Ty…"

"Nope," she sang, prancing out of the elevator when the doors opened. She couldn't stop the small, content sigh from escaping her lips when she felt the breeze sweep through her hair, coming from the open area on the other side of the room.

"Look at this place," Tallulah marvelled "Top of the world."

Tyra smiled "I heard that before."

"Hey, Tyra, look at this," Martha spoke up, gesturing for her to come over to a drawing board. There were blueprints on it "That looks good."

"Look at the date," Frank pointed out "These designs were issued today. They must've changed something last minute."

Martha tilted her head "You mean the Daleks changed something?"

"Could be," Frank shrugged.

Damon leaned on Tyra's shoulder "But why would they change something today? What made them…" He broke off in confusion.

"I have no idea," Tyra shrugged "I mean, maybe they were trying to move things along faster? If they have been behind the construction the whole time then I'm not surprised it was going this fast… I always wondered…"

"The ones underneath… They're from before," Martha noticed, shifting the sheet to the side a little "That means whatever they changed must be on this top sheet but not on this one. We need to check one against the other."

Tallulah meanwhile was walking in the direction of the open area "The height of this place. This is amazing."

"Careful," Martha warned when she saw what Tallulah was doing "We're a hundred floors up. Don't go wandering off."

"I just want to see," she whispered, going to the opening, looking out towards the Chrysler building "New York City. If aliens had to come to Earth, oh, no wonder they came here."

Damon wandered over to her "According to Ty, aliens prefer London."

"Really?" Tallulah questioned. Tyra glanced over her shoulder, watching Tallulah and Damon with a small grin. Damon had really been so different back in his first century of life… It was almost sad how much he changed because of Katherine and his younger brother. She was just glad that she was allowed to see the real Damon, the person he had been all those years ago instead of the person he portrayed to everyone else "But look at this place."

Damon hummed "It really is beautiful. Nothing I have seen before in any case."

"Your accent is different," Tallulah pointed out "Where are you from? How do you know Tyra? And that other lady. The three of you are friends?"

"I'm from a small town in Virginia. That's also where I met Tyra," Damon murmured, catching her gaze with a small smile "Sage found me and Tyra a few years ago here in New York. Ty and she already knew each other."

Tallulah tilted her head "They did?"

Tyra walked over to them "Sage is the wife of my oldest brother. I hadn't seen her in a while before she ran into Damon downtown." Tyra's gaze moved away from them and she started staring into the distance. A storm was coming and she had a feeling that this would either turn out bad or… really bad.

"Let's go back in," Tallulah spoke up after a few more minutes "I don't like the look of those clouds."

* * *

By now, Martha and Frank had spread out the blueprints on the floor. Frank looked up when we rejoined them "I'll go and keep an eye out. Make sure we're safe up here. Don't want nobody butting in."

"I'll come with you," Damon spoke up, hurrying after Frank.

"There's a hell of a storm moving in," Tallulah pointed out as she knelt down next to Martha.

Martha sighed "I wish the Doctor was here. He'd know what we're looking for."

Tyra blinked slowly "We know what we're looking for. We just have to find it."

"What?"

"Dalekanium?" she questioned "Remember?" With that Tyra looked down at the blueprints "This is the newest, right?"

Martha nodded "Yeah."

"Okay," Tyra hummed, studying them carefully.

Tallulah looked at Martha curiously "So tell me, where did you meet the Doctor? And are you two hooking up?"

Tyra stiffened lightly, not enough for them to notice as Martha let out a breath "It was in a hospital… Sort of. And no, we're not hooking up. I think he has a thing for Tyra. Or at least she has a thing for him."

"What?" she sighed when Tallulah turned to look at her with interest shining in her eyes.

"Ty, I've seen the way you look at him and he did kiss you earlier," Martha pointed out "He looks at you the same way you look at him."

Tyra shook her head "Look, I know. We both know how the other feels but… It's complicated."

"Is that really all you say?"

She was silent for a moment before she turned away from her "I found it," she spoke up, changing the subject "Here." Tyra tapped the blueprints "These lines here – on the mast – they're new."

"But why?" Tallulah tilted her head.

Tyra raised her eyebrow, causing Martha and Tallulah to exchange a look of realization "Dalekanium."

"_Ty,_" Tyra heard Damon's voice from where he and Frank were standing "_The elevator is on its way up._"

"_How would she hear you?_" Frank frowned "_Isn't she all the way back there._"

Tyra turned to Martha "Elevator is on its way up."

Just as she had finished the words, the doors of the lift opened, revealing the Doctor and Laszlo "Doctor," Martha exclaimed in relief.

"First floor, perfumery," the Time Lord joked.

Tallulah had run at Laszlo, throwing her arms around his neck "I never thought I'd see you again."

"No stopping me," Laszlo smiled a little painfully, wrapping his arms around his girlfriend.

"We've worked it out," Martha explained, dragging the Doctor over to the blueprints "We know what they've done. Look, here." She traced the lines on the mast "There's Dalekanium on the mast. And it's good to see you, by the way."

The Doctor rolled his eyes with a grin "Oh, come here." He swept Martha off her feet before turning to Tyra "You're wearing it," he grinned as his arms wrapped around her, practically swallowing her in a hug "I knew you'd figure it out," he whispered, leaning his forehead against the top of Tyra's head as the elevator doors shut "No, no, no," the Time Lord groaned, releasing Tyra hurriedly "See, never waste time with a hug. Deadlock seal. I can't stop it."

"Where's it going?" Martha asked, throwing Tyra a pointed look.

"Right down to the Daleks," the Doctor grumbled, tugging at his hair "And they're not going to leave us alone up here. What's the time?"

Frank looked down at his watch "Er… Eleven fifteen."

"Six minutes to go," the Doctor mused "I've got to remove the Dalekanium before the gamma radiation hits."

"Gammon radiation?" the showgirl blinked "What the heck is that?"

Tyra followed the Doctor to the open area "He means lightning."

"Well, why doesn't he just say that then?"

"Oh, that's high," the Doctor grimaced, looking down "That's very… Blimey, that's high."

"Since when are you afraid of heights?" Tyra questioned in confusion as he jerked back a little "You didn't have a problem hanging over the edge of the Sycorax ship."

The Doctor crossed his arms "I'm not afraid of heights… I just have respect."

"Right," Tyra nodded, sounding unconvinced.

Martha groaned "Are you two done? We've got to go even higher. That's the mast up there, look." She pointed upwards "There's three pieces of Dalekanium on the base. We've got to get them off."

"That's not we," the Doctor shook his head, blocking the way up a wooden ladder "That's just me."

"Again?" Tyra demanded.

He shot her a look "Don't argue with me now. Please. They need you – both of you down here. You have to fight." She gritted her teeth and whirled around, stalking off to where Damon was standing. If the Doctor kept acting like he did, she would do something she'd regret. Seriously, Tyra could take care of herself and didn't need to be wrapped up and patted on the head whenever something dangerous was happening.

Damon raised his eyebrow "You alright?"

"Yes," she hissed, taking a couple of calming breaths.

"You know, if I didn't know you better, I'd say you changed a lot. Actually, you have changed a lot," Damon murmured "I take it that it's because of him?"

Tyra couldn't stop the glance she threw over her shoulder, catching the Doctor's eyes before he turned, climbing up the ladder "Yeah. I – He's never judged me for what I am, Damon… Sure, he might disapprove but that's different. I…"

"She was right, wasn't she?" Damon questioned, nodding to Martha who was just walking back towards them.

"Yeah," Tyra muttered, avoiding his eyes.

The Salvatore snorted "I can see it in your face, you know. Why are you so against it? If you both have feelings for each other, why don't you just go for it?"

"Have you seen me?" Tyra huffed "I just don't understand why he would like me… I don't even really know what I'm feeling. What if it's not…?"

Damon wrapped his arms around Tyra's waist for a moment "Why don't you talk to him about it? You know what I think?" He waited for a moment, tilting her chin up "I think that he is a lucky man to have your attention. You're amazing, Ty. Don't let anyone tell you any different. Both you and Sage have helped me so much already and I can never repay either of you."

"You don't have to," she protested "It's not your fault after all."

"I know," he sighed "But this is not about me."

Martha raised her eyebrow at Tyra "Tell me again that he isn't head over heels for you," Martha grumbled "He's way more protective over you than anyone else."

"The elevator's coming up," I remarked, shifting away from Damon. She threw a look at Martha "If you want the overprotectiveness, you can have it. I don't need him wrapping me up like a child."

Frank swallowed "I should have brought that gun."

Laszlo pulled Tallulah behind him "Tallulah, stay back. You too, Martha, Tyra. If they send pig slaves, they're trained to kill."

"The Doctor needs me to fight," Martha pointed out, not moving away "I'm not going anywhere."

Tyra turned to her "We've got this, Martha. Damon and I can take care of them without a problem."

"But…"

"No buts," she smiled "Please?"

Martha sighed "Alright."

"They're savages," Laszlo protested when Tyra stepped up between him and Damon "I should know. They're trained to slit your throat with their bare teeth."

Tyra waved him off "I had worse than a slit throat."

"Laszlo?" Tallulah cried out when he collapsed to the ground, panting "What is it?"

He shrugged her off "No, it's nothing. I'm fine. Just leave me."

"Oh, honey," Tallulah sighed, brushing his hair back "You're burning up. What's wrong with you? Tell me."

Frank glanced back "Great. One man down, we ain't even started yet. Now there's only two of us."

Tyra shot him a slightly annoyed look "What am I? Chopped liver?"

"She's a better fighter than me," Damon pointed out "If you don't want to fight then go ahead. Ty and I can manage."

"Maybe you don't have to," Martha spoke up, glancing out into the open area where lightning was lighting up the walls.

"You want to electrocute them," Tyra realized "Well, saves me from having to get my hands dirty."

"I never heard you complain about that," Damon teased "I'm not sure I'm liking this new you."

She hit the back of his head "Idiot."

"Are you like this with everyone?" Martha demanded, her eyes showing her amusement "Because I could use your help if you're done."

"Sorry, Martha," Tyra grinned sheepishly, taking apart the metal scaffolding while Martha and Frank got the chairs ready. She threw several of the metal bars to Damon, positioning the first few against the base of the mast.

Tallulah was still running her hands through her boyfriend's hair "Aw, you'll be alright, sweetheart," she cooed "Don't you worry." She looked up in annoyance when she was almost hit by one of the chairs "What are you clowns doing?"

"Even if the Doctor stops the Dalekanium, this place is still going to get hit," Martha pointed out.

Tyra held up one of the bars "Electricity all the way down. If we connect these to the lift, the pigmen will get zapped. Not very nice way to go but… Oh well."

Frank looked over at Tyra "The way you talk one would think that you died like a hundred times already."

"You saw Damon die," Tyra pointed out, helping the young man to connect the pipes to the scaffolding outside "And he's obviously still here. Trust me, I've died… a lot. In quite a few different ways. None of them are advisable although some aren't as bad until you wake up."

Tallulah looked at the line of metal nervously "Is that going to work?"

"It should," Martha shrugged "If not I'm sure Tyra wouldn't mind getting her hands dirty."

"My pleasure," she called over her shoulder.

Frank blinked "How did you hear that? The only thing I hear is the storm."

"Maybe I'll tell you, maybe Damon will but not now," Tyra murmured, tugging a lock of wet hair behind her ear.

Martha looked at Frank and Tyra, waving them over "Just sit here and try not to touch anything metal."

"Yeah," Frank nodded, plopping down next to Martha.

Tyra knelt down slightly in front of them, keeping her eyes on the elevator. Floor 90… Floor 100… She jumped when she heard a loud scream from outside but before she could move, the electricity flowed down the conductor, along the scaffolding poles and straight to the pigmen in the elevator "Doctor," she whispered, jumping over the still sparking pipes to run outside.

"What happened?" Martha called after her when she noticed where Tyra was going.

It was Damon who replied since she was already halfway up the mast. Further up, Tyra could see the still figure of the Doctor lying uncomfortably close to the edge "Doctor," she murmured, pulling him away from the edge and onto her lap. His hearts were still beating but that didn't make him any less unconscious.

"Doctor," Martha gasped, seeing him lying on Tyra's lap. She had the sonic clenched in her hands "Look what we found halfway down. You're getting careless." Martha laughed lightly and leaned forward when the Doctor gasped awake.

He raised his hand and groaned "Oh my head."

"Hiya," Martha smiled.

"Hi," he murmured back "You survived, then." His head tilted back, rubbing against Tyra's stomach a little "Are you okay?"

She nodded before tapping him on the forehead "We're talking about this later."

Martha cleared her throat over the sound of the still roaring storm "I can't help noticing… There's Dalekanium still attached."

They all looked up before startling into action, quickly climbing back down the mast to where the others were waiting. The Doctor started pacing "The Daleks will have gone straight to a war footing. They'll be using the sewers, spreading the soldiers out underneath Manhattan."

"How do we stop them?" Laszlo asked, getting up slowly. He was leaning on Tallulah heavily but he looked a little better.

The Doctor ran a hand through his dripping hair, making it stand up in every direction "There's only one chance. I got in the way. That gamma strike went zapping through me first."

Tyra tilted her head, her eyes a little wider than normal "Does that mean that they're part Time Lord and part Dalek?"

"We need to draw fire," the Doctor explained after a quick nod "Before they can attack New York. I need to face them. Where can I draw them out? Think, think, think."

"What about the theatre?" Damon asked.

The Doctor's head snapped around "That's it. Tallulah."

"That's me," she raised her hand "Three Ls and an H."

"The theatre… It's right above them and – what – it's gone midnight? Can you get us inside?" the Time Lord questioned.

Tallulah shrugged "Don't see why not."

"Is there another lift?" the Doctor asked, looking at the normal elevator with the dead pigmen still scattered around.

"We came up in the service elevator," Martha pointed out.

The Doctor grinned "That'll do. Allons-y."

* * *

The journey to the theatre passed in silence. Tyra was trying to ignore the Doctor, slightly annoyed at him for getting hurt. This must be how he was feeling whenever she got hurt… The only difference was that she could heal from just about everything. Him… Not so much. Yeah, he would regenerate but it wasn't like he had an unlimited number of lives or even regeneration energy.

Tallulah opened the door to the theatre with a key that she had gotten from somewhere. Tyra didn't ask and didn't really care too much either. It was pretty cool inside which immediately caused Tallulah to shiver. The Doctor stopped in the middle of the theatre "This should do it. Here we go."

"There ain't nothing more creepy than a theatre in the dark," Tallulah shuddered "Listen, Doctor, I know you got a thing for show tunes but there's a time and place, huh?" Her attention was drawn from the Time Lord to her boyfriend when the pigman fell into one of the seats heavily "Laszlo, what's wrong?"

Laszlo shook his head "Nothing. It's just so hot."

"But it's freezing in here," Tallulah whispered in concern "Doctor, what's happening to him?"

"Not now, Tallulah," the Doctor waved off "Sorry."

Martha raised her eyebrow at the Doctor who had climbed onto a row of seats "What are you doing?"

"If the Daleks are going to war, they'll want to find their number one enemy," the Doctor pointed out matter-of-factly "I'm just telling them where I am." He held up his screwdriver as it continued beeping. After a minute, he turned towards the others "I'm telling you to go. Frank can take you all back to Hooverville."

"And I'm telling you I'm not going," Martha crossed her arms.

Tyra nodded in agreement "You should know by now that I'm not leaving you. I've humoured you for the past few adventures but I'm not letting you go and get yourself killed."

The Doctor tensed "That's an order."

"Who are you, then?" the medical student challenged "Some sort of Dalek?"

Tyra looked from her to the Time Lord and back "Martha," she warned quietly, shaking her head at her "I know you're mad but don't ever say that again."

They whirled around when the doors exploded inwards and people marched in from both sides, surrounding us. Tallulah let out a squeak "Doctor. Oh, my God. Well, I guess that's them then, huh?"

"Humans with Dalek DNA?" Martha murmured.

The Doctor held out his arms, hands up "It's alright, it's alright. Just stay calm. Don't antagonize them."

"But what of the Dalek Masters?" Laszlo spoke up carefully, watching the Dalek humans warily "Where are they?"

Just as he said that there was an explosion on stage and two of the three remaining Daleks appeared with Sec on a chain, crawling on his hands and knees "You just had to ask, didn't you?" Tyra sighed, stepping next to the Doctor.

"The Doctor will stand before the Daleks," the Dalek on the left ordered, its eyestalk looking from one person to the other before coming to rest on me "And the Companion too." The Doctor walked over the top of the seats easily as Tyra followed him quietly. His hand was clenched on her arm. She wasn't sure whether he was trying to comfort her or himself "You will die, Doctor. It is the beginning of a new age."

The Dalek on the right moved forward "Planet Earth will become New Skaro."

"Oh, and what a world," the Doctor spat "With anything just the slightest bit different ground into the dirt." He nodded to the former Dalek on the ground "That's Dalek Sec. Don't you remember? The cleverest Dalek ever and look what you've done to him. Is that your new Empire, hmm? Is that the foundation for a whole new civilization?"

Tyra tugged on his hand "Do you think it's a good idea to antagonize Daleks? Normally I'm all for it but we're slightly outnumbered at the moment."

"My Daleks," Sec rasped "Just understand this. If you choose death and destruction, then death and destruction will choose you."

The left Dalek turned "Incorrect. We will always survive."

"Now we will destroy our greatest enemy, the Doctor," the other Dalek announced.

"But he can help you," Sec pointed out.

The left Dalek's whisk twitched "The Doctor must die."

"No," Sec gasped "I beg you, don't."

"Exterminate." Tyra slipped in front of the Doctor, hoping to protect him from dying but she didn't count on Sec standing up just as the Dalek fired.

"Your own leader," the Doctor grimaced in disgust, wrapping his arm around Tyra's waist. He didn't try to push her behind him again which she counted as a win. Maybe for once he actually got what she was trying to do "The only creature who might have led you out of the darkness and you destroyed him. Do you see what they did?" He turned to the Dalek humans "Huh? You see what a Dalek really is?" The Doctor glanced over his shoulder and past Tyra "If I'm going to die, let's give the new boys a shot. What do you think, eh? The Dalek humans. Their first blood. Go on, baptise them."

Tyra let out a breath "You better know what you're doing," she mumbled.

"Where would be the fun in that?" he shot back, steeling himself. Either he was going to die in a moment or his plan had worked. After all, the Dalek humans should have some of his DNA inside them as well.

"Dalek humans," the left Dalek called out "Take aim." They turned their guns on the Doctor.

The Doctor clenched his jaw "What are you waiting for?" he goaded "Give the command."

"Exterminate." Both the Doctor and Tyra stiffened, waiting for something to happen but nothing did.

"Exterminate," the second Dalek cried out.

The left Dalek moved forward "Obey. Dalek humans will obey."

Martha glanced at them "They're not firing. What have you done?"

"You will obey," the Dalek cried out "Exterminate."

"Why?" the first Dalek human questioned.

The second Dalek reared back "Daleks do not question orders."

"But why?"

"You will stop this."

The Dalek human tilted his head "But why?"

"You must not question."

"But you are not out Master," the man pointed out "And we – we are not Daleks."

The Doctor relaxed with a small smile stealing its way across his face "No, you're not. And you'll never be." He smirked at the Daleks on the stage "Sorry, I got in the way of the lightning strike. Time Lord DNA got all mixed up. Just that little bit of freedom."

"If they will not obey, then they must die," the Dalek on the left huffed. He shot the man who had questioned orders.

"Get down," the Doctor called out, dragging Tyra down between the seats.

The Dalek humans turned on the two aliens on stage, firing at them as the Daleks fired at the humans "Exterminate. Exterminate. Extermin…" One after the other the Daleks exploded and the Dalek humans stopped shooting.

"It's alright," the Doctor soothed, looking at the still people "It's alright. You did it. You're free." All of a sudden, the mutants started clutching at their hands, dropping to the ground, dead "No. They can't. They can't. They can't."

"What happened?" Martha demanded "What was that?"

The Doctor straightened up, his face set "They killed them, rather than let them live. An entire species. Genocide."

Laszlo straightened with a low groan, nodding at Damon when he came forward to steady him "Only two of the Daleks have been destroyed. One of the Dalek Masters must still be alive."

"Oh, yes," the Doctor smirked darkly "In the whole universe, just one." He turned to look at Tyra "How about we go and see for ourselves?"

Tyra inclined her head "I'd be happy to."

* * *

They took the way through the props room down to the sewers, making it to the Dalek laboratory in barely anytime. The others and Tyra stayed back, while the Doctor walked closer to the Dalek strapped into the cables "Now what?" the Doctor demanded.

"You will be exterminated," the Dalek said.

The Doctor snorted, waving him off "Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Just think about it, Dalek… What was your name?"

"Dalek Caan."

"Dalek Caan," the Doctor repeated "Your entire species has been wiped out. And now the Cult of Skaro has been eradicated, leaving only you. Right now, you're facing the only man in the universe who might show you some compassion. Because I've just seen one genocide. I won't cause another. Caan, let me help you. What do you say?"

The Dalek was silent for a moment "Emergency temporal shift," it cried out, disappearing.

"No, no, no," the Doctor chanted, moving towards the cables. Tyra sped in front of him, catching him. He was still muttering under his breath as he closed his eyes tightly.

"Doctor," Martha called out panicked "Doctor. He's sick." Tyra looked over to see Damon and Frank holding onto a wheezing Laszlo, helping him to sit down on the ground "It's okay," Martha whispered soothingly "You're alright. It's his heart. It's racing like mad. I've never seen anything like it."

Tallulah took Laszlo's hand in hers "What is it, Doctor? What's the matter with him? He says he can't breathe. What is it?"

"It's time, sweetheart," Laszlo gasped.

"What do you mean, time?" Tallulah demanded "What are you talking about?"

Laszlo looked up, still wheezing "None of the slaves survive for long. Most of them only live for a few weeks. I was lucky. I held on because I had you. But now, I'm dying, Tallulah."

"No," Tallulah shook her head, tears gathering in her eyes "You're not. Not now, after all this. Doctor, can't you do something?"

The Doctor smiled at the showgirl, crouching down in front of Laszlo "Oh, Tallulah with three Ls and an H, just you watch me. What do I need? Oh, I don't know. How about a great big genetic laboratory?" He grinned lightly "Oh look, I've got one. Laszlo, just you hold on. There's been too many deaths today." The Doctor started working with coloured liquids, causing the rest of them to look at each other in slight confusion "Way too many people have died. Brand new creatures and wise old men and age-old enemies. And I'm telling you, I'm telling you right now, I am not having one more death. You got that? Not one. Tallulah, out of the way. The Doctor is in."

* * *

After another few hours, they were back in Hooverville, standing with Solomon and Sage "Well, we talked to them," Frank pointed out, looking at Laszlo with a smile "They might not have been happy but you have a home here, Laszlo."

"People are going to stare," Solomon added "We can't promise you'll be at peace but, in the end, that's what Hooverville stands for."

Sage placed a hand on Laszlo's shoulder "If anyone gives you trouble, come to me or Damon. We'll take care of it."

Laszlo smiled at them gratefully "Thank you. I can't thank you enough."

"Ty," Sage spoke up, looking at her "Can I talk to you for a moment?"

Tyra patted Laszlo's shoulder and followed her two vampire friends to the side, far enough away that the others wouldn't be able to hear "What's up?"

"I just need to know…" Sage broke off, taking a deep breath "In your time… What about Finn?"

Tyra lowered her head "I don't know," she whispered, an apology in her tone "If he gets undaggered, I will let you know, alright? I promise. Just make sure that Damon will have a way to contact you."

"Contact me how?" the redhead frowned, her eyes showing what she didn't want to say.

Tyra drew her into a hug "You'll know when the time comes. I'm sorry, Sage. I wish that I could tell you something else."

"It's not your fault," she muttered.

"And yet, I feel responsible," Tyra smiled sadly "Maybe if I had done more, Nik would have woken Finn…"

Sage shook her head "You did try and you paid the price. I don't blame you."

"And just to get this straight," Damon spoke up "We can't tell you about any of this?"

Tyra shook her head "Just like I can't tell you anything about your future," she explained "For the me you know, this is still a century in the future."

"This is annoyingly complicated," the Salvatore grumbled.

"Try getting timelines straight when you travel all over," Tyra snorted "I haven't seen one of my brothers in a century and yet I have seen him recently."

Sage raised her eyebrow "Who?"

"Kol," she told her "There was Shakespeare… and witches."

Sage's eyebrows disappeared into her hairline "No way."

"Yes way," Tyra nodded.

"Tyra," the Doctor called out from behind them "Separate yourself and come. We should go."

Tyra rolled her eyes "Well, you heard him. I'll see you two."

"Bye, Ty," Damon murmured, pulling Tyra into a tight hug "And take care of yourself, will you?"

She saluted him playfully before pressing a small kiss to both his and Sage's cheeks "Make sure you stay out of trouble, alright?" With that, she turned to job back to where the Doctor and Martha were waiting for her.

* * *

On the way back to the Tardis, Martha stopped "Do you think it's going to work, those two?"

The Doctor shook his head with a shrug "I don't know. Anywhere else in the universe, I might worry about them but New York? That's what the city's good at. Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses and maybe the odd pig slave Dalek mutant hybrid too."

Tyra snorted at that. Well, he wasn't wrong. New York was good at new starts, no matter what or who you were "They have good people taking care of them," she spoke up "I'm sure that for the time Damon and Sage are in New York, they'll look after the two."

"Hm," the Time Lord nodded "With anyone else, I might worry too but Damon is good at… stuff."

"Stuff," Tyra repeated incredulously.

Martha suddenly burst out laughing. When they turned to her, she held up her hands "I just… The pig and the showgirl."

"The pig and the showgirl," the Doctor laughed.

"It just proves it, I suppose," Martha sighed "There's someone for everyone."

The Doctor glanced down at Tyra for a moment before turning away "Maybe."

"Meant to say, I'm sorry," Martha mumbled.

"What for?" the Doctor tilted his head in confusion.

Martha shrugged "Just because that Dalek got away and for what I said. I should have known better. Do you think you'll ever see it again?"

"Oh, yes," the Doctor nodded "One day."

"Most likely sooner rather than later," Tyra added "Daleks are like cockroaches. Just when you thought you got rid of them, they come back."

The Doctor groaned "Don't I know it."


	22. Lazarus Experiment

„There we are," the Doctor nodded in satisfaction "Perfect landing. Which isn't easy in such a tight spot."

Martha raised her eyebrows in amusement "You should be used to tight spots by now. Where are we?"

"The end of the line," the Doctor replied, making Tyra's head snap up. He was taking her home. Why? "No place like it." The medical student grinned before practically running outside.

"You took her home," Tyra murmured, stopping the Doctor from walking past her "Why?"

The Doctor tilted his head "I promised her one trip. She got three."

"Are you really sure that you want to leave her at home?" Tyra asked, narrowing her eyes "Because from what I've seen you like having her around as much as I do. And I know that I like having her around."

"Come on," the Doctor sighed, lightly pushing Tyra toward the door. He wanted some time along with Tyra but apparently, she wouldn't let him. Still, he would have to try.

Martha was staring at her apartment in sadness "Home. You took me home?"

The Doctor nodded "In fact, the morning after we left, so you've on been gone about twelve hours. No time at all, really."

"But all the stuff we've done… Shakespeare, New New York, old New York?"

"Yep," the Doctor grinned "All in one night, relatively speaking. Everything should be just as it was. Books, CDs, laundry." He picked up a piece of underwear with a smirk on his face. Martha gaped at him for a moment before snatching it away "So, back where you were, as promised."

Martha bit her lip "That's it?" She glanced over at Tyra "Ty?"

Tyra raised her shoulder in a shrug "Sorry, Martha. I really like having you around but, in the end… It's his decision."

"I'm going to miss you," Martha mumbled into Tyra's shoulder, pulling her into a hug "You'll keep in contact?"

"I'll definitely…" She was cut off by Martha's phone ringing.

"_Hi, I'm out,_" Martha's voice said on the answering machine "_Leave a message._"

Martha grimaced but made no move to answer the phone "I'm sorry."

"_Martha, are you there?_" an older woman asked "_Pick it up, will you?_"

"It's Mum," Martha sighed, waving off "It'll wait."

A huff sounded from the answering machine "_Alright then, pretend that you're out if you like._"

Tyra snorted in amusement "Well, she knows you."

"_I was only calling to say that your sister's on TV. On the news of all things._" Martha's mother sounded more than a little exasperated "_Just thought you might be interested._"

Martha gasped, diving for the remote of her TV. An old man appeared on the screen with a younger woman standing behind him "_The details are top secret,_" the man said, looking right at the camera.

"How could Tish end up on the news?" Martha blinked in confusion.

"_Tonight, I will demonstrate a device which will redefine our world,_" the man continued with a smug smile "_With the push of a single button, I will change what it means to be human._"

Tyra shook her head at the screen, knowing that they would probably go and check it out whether it meant to take Martha along or not. In fact… Maybe this was her chance to get the Doctor to change his mind. She had no idea why he was so adamant to leave her at home anyway. They had gotten along, hadn't they?

Martha turned to us "She's got a new job," she said, gesturing to her sister "PR for some research lab…" She shook her head "Sorry. You were saying we should…?"

The Doctor's attention snapped back to Martha when she turned off the TV "Yes, yes, we should. One trip is what we said."

"It's what you said," Tyra muttered, rolling her eyes behind his back.

Martha nodded, obviously crushed by what was happening. Tyra couldn't blame her. Travelling with the Doctor was amazing and she genuinely liked Martha… She was smart and didn't take any crap from the Doctor "Yeah. I suppose things just kind of escalated."

"Mm," the Doctor grinned lightly "Seems to happen to me a lot."

"Thank you," Martha murmured, looking up at the man "For everything."

The Doctor inclined his head "It was my pleasure." He turned around to walk back into the Tardis, leaving Tyra with Martha for a moment.

Tyra moved forward again, wrapping her arms around Martha for a second time "Don't worry too much," she breathed into her ear "I think we'll be back sooner than you think. But in case I'm wrong… Good luck."

"Thank you, Ty," Martha murmured "Really. I know that I was a bit… You know, at the beginning."

Tyra laughed "Don't worry about it. I mean it. There is nothing going on and…" She shook my head "Anyway. I should go."

"Bye… Take care of him." She paused for a short moment "He's going to need it."

"Too true," Tyra grinned, making her way into the Tardis. As soon as she had the door closed behind her, the Doctor took off "So," she spoke up "What now?"

The Time Lord didn't seem to hear her, though. Instead, he was staring at the console blankly "… what it means to be human…" he mumbled to himself. Tyra smirked, knowing that she had been right. Her hand shot out to hold on to one of the corals near her when the Tardis gave a violent jerk. The Doctor landed against, rushing past Tyra out of the door "No, I'm sorry," he shook his head "Did he say he was going to change what it means to be human?"

"Told you so," Tyra murmured to Martha, falling down on her couch "So, what does that mean?"

The Doctor hummed, glancing at Martha "Can you get us into that event?"

"I wasn't planning on going," Martha sighed, sitting down next to Tyra "But I guess I could. Although… Having a Plus Two isn't the norm, is it?"

"For him, it is," Tyra grinned.

"Yeah, yeah," the Doctor rolled his eyes "So, what do you say?"

Martha tapped her chin mock thoughtfully "Another adventure with you? Hm… I don't know." A grin stole its way across her face "Yes. I… I don't have a dress though."

Tyra grabbed onto her wrist "Tardis. Come on." She then froze "Wait… Have I never showed you the wardrobe?"

"Nope," Martha shook her head "You didn't. There was just the closet in my room."

"Huh," Tyra mumbled, shaking her head before glancing over her shoulder "Please tell me that you're changing too. Jumper doesn't count this time."

The Doctor crossed his arms "That was one time."

"One is one time too many," Tyra pointed out, dragging Martha through the Tardis with her "The wardrobe is awesome. Trust me, you'll love it."

"Isn't it a bit too early to get ready? I mean, it's morning… The party isn't until tonight," Martha sighed.

Tyra stopped in front of the door to the wardrobe "You might just need the time to find something to wear." She stepped forward, pushing the door open with a small flourish.

"Holy… This – is the wardrobe?" Martha asked, her mouth open in shock as her eyes darted around the huge room.

"Yup," she nodded happily "I normally only come in here for dresses. The rest of the stuff, the Tardis transferred to my closet in my room. Dresses… Not so much."

Martha raised her eyebrow "Not the dress type?"

"I don't mind them but if I can, I'll wear something else," Tyra shrugged "The last time I wore a dress, we ended up in 1941. We ran into one of my older brothers who called me a whore because of how short the dress was for the time." That thought alone caused her to pout "Nik should know… I never wear period appropriate clothes. Loved to wear pants before it became normal. Then again, I think my brothers just thought I was trying to be difficult."

Martha hummed "How many brothers do you have again? I mean, I know Kol but…?"

"Four," she told her with a small grimace "Kol is the youngest older brother I have."

"Is he the next in age after you?"

Tyra shook my head "No. It's me, Rebekah, Kol, Niklaus, Elijah and Finn."

"So… You and your sister have four older – more than likely over-protective – brothers?" Martha winced "I pity you."

"Thanks," Tyra shook her head in amusement "You heard my argument with Kol. They never really let me live my life the way I wanted to. Rebekah was more of a rebel, I guess. But after seeing her… lovers die every time, I never really tried."

Martha stopped rifling through the rack of clothes "Is that why you told the Doctor you weren't ready?"

"No," Tyra sighed quietly.

"Yeah, right," Martha snorted "Look, it's not bad to admit your feelings… And if I'm completely honest with you, he is so in love with you as well."

Tyra looked at her hands before reaching up to grab at the necklace "I know…"

"Then what is the problem?" Martha turned away from the rack she had been looking through, sitting down next to Tyra.

"Look, I – I'm scared. I don't want to lose him over this. It's easier to stay friends than to be together and completely mess up."

Martha placed her hand on my shoulder "What makes you so sure?"

"What?" Tyra blinked.

"What makes you so sure that you'll mess up?" she asked "You're practically together already anyway."

Tyra scoffed "I heard that before."

"Ty, you're arguing like an old married couple," Martha pointed out "And you know him better than anyone else. I think that speaks for itself."

"Does it?" she asked before sighing, running her hand through her hair "Look, even if he likes me too… I – I can't, not yet. Maybe some other time but I feel like I'm not ready for something like this."

Martha pulled Tyra into a quick hug "That's all that you needed to admit, Ty. Don't deny what you're feeling. You might not be ready but that doesn't change your feelings, right?" She shook her head "See? Anyway, what do you think you'll wear?"

Tyra shrugged "No idea. I don't necessarily want to dress nice but then again. Can't embarrass you, can I?"

"Damn right, you can't." Martha wagged her finger in Tyra's face jokingly "Come on, let's find something to wear."

* * *

It did take them a while to find the right thing to wear but it was totally worth it. While they had been searching, Tyra told Martha about a few of their older adventures, about Mickey and about having Damon along. Especially about having Damon along for a little bit. Since she had met him during our last adventure, Martha was interested in how he was. Tyra told her as much as she felt comfortable with but kept most of the private stuff exactly that. Private. It was Damon's story to tell.

"Ooh," Tyra murmured, looking at the outfit that had practically appeared in front of her. She looked up at the Tardis "Either you want to get rid of me or you want to help. I can't decide which one it is, though." The Tardis hummed in amusement, making a pair of black under-knee boots appear underneath the outfit. Tyra huffed and grinned "Okay, I don't really care anymore. This is actually pretty nice. Thanks." She grabbed the outfit from the hanger and the shoes before making her way to one of the screens that were in the bottom part of the wardrobe. Martha was already there, trying on several different dresses.

She looked over, showing Tyra the red dress that she was wearing "What do you think?"

"Eh," Tyra grimaced lightly "It's a bit too… out there for you, I guess."

Martha hummed, looking back at her reflection "I think you're right. Have you found anything?"

"Yup," Tyra nodded, pulling off her shirt. After a thousand years, she wasn't shy about changing in front of people anymore. There was nothing bad about being confident after all. She quickly changed into the outfit the Tardis had chosen. It was a short, sequinned golden skirt with black see-through tights and a black top that was uneven at the bottom.

"Woah," Martha breathed, looking over "That… How did you find that?"

Tyra studied herself in the mirror with a critical expression "The Tardis gave it to me." She slipped on the shoes before turning to look at her hair "I like the outfit. But I don't know about my hair." She glanced to the side, seeing the dress Martha was wearing now. It was a little too short which showed in how uncomfortable Martha looked "Try the brownish-purple one over there. I think that would be better."

"Thanks, Ty," Martha grinned, grabbing the dress from her pile "Come here for a moment. I think I have an idea for your hair." She grabbed a delicate headband from one of the dressers close to the mirror and gestured for her to turn around "Here." Martha messed around a little before turning Tyra back towards the mirror.

Her hair was still open but a little less messy than before with curls falling over her shoulders lightly. Martha had also put an intricate crystal headband into her hair. It was resting on Tyra's forehead like a crown. But it was just thin and delicate enough to look elegant instead of too much "This works," she nodded happily "Thank you, Martha."

"You're welcome," Martha smiled "I think I'll leave my hair open for once too." She waved around a woven black headband that would keep her hair from her face "Now go, shoo. Make sure the Doctor is actually wearing something presentable."

Tyra grinned "Do you think he wouldn't."

"Well, you did mention something about a jumper," she pointed out "Just… It is going to be a black-tie event after all."

"Don't worry. I'll make sure that he's fine," Tyra told her with a nod "Also… Try to find some plum shoes or some similar colour. Go for something a little bit lighter than the dress."

"Yes, yes," Martha waved her off "Thanks."

Tyra nodded at her over her shoulder "I should be the one thanking you," she grinned "Anyway, don't take too long." With that, she was out of the wardrobe and on her way to the console room. She was really glad that the Tardis had given her boots without a heel. While she could run in heels, she really didn't want to break her ankle with the amount of running that was involved in almost everything they did recently "You actually did change," Tyra remarked once she saw the Doctor tugging at his bow tie uncomfortably.

"Don't sound so surprised," the Doctor pouted, turning around. His eyes wandered over her figure before returning to her face. Tyra sent him a smirk, making him look away "You look nice."

Her smirk turned to a small smile "Thank you. I like the suit, by the way."

"But whenever I wear it, something bad happens."

Tyra shook my head "That's not the suit," I snorted "That's you."

"Oi," he exclaimed, jabbing his finger into Tyra's shoulder "You're not much better."

"Face it," Tyra bantered "You might not like us wandering off but you get into more trouble than we ever could."

The Doctor was about to open his mouth to argue when Martha stepped into the room. Tyra turned to her, noticing the way the dress looked on her "Hey, that dress does look good on you," she complimented with a smile, bouncing over to her.

"It rather does," Martha smiled, turning to the Doctor "Let's get going then, shall we?"

The Doctor nodded, leading them out of the Tardis and out of Martha's flat.

* * *

Outside, the Doctor started tugging at his bow tie again "Black tie," he grumbled when Tyra slapped his hand away "Whenever I wear this, something bad always happens."

Martha looked over at him "It's not the outfit, that's just you."

"That's what I said," Tyra snorted, fist-bumping Martha who was grinning as well.

"Anyway, I think it suits you. In a James Bond kind of way," the medical student gestured.

The Doctor grimaced "James Bond? Really?"

"What do you have against James Bond?" Martha frowned, starting up the steps to the Lazarus Laboratories.

They were allowed in without any trouble, getting in as Martha's company. Which got a weird look from the man with the list but he didn't say anything "Oh, look," the Doctor exclaimed excitedly "They've got nibbles. I love nibbles."

"Hello," the young woman from the TV walked up to us, smiling at Martha happily.

Martha threw her arms around her sister "Tish."

"You look great," Tish complimented "So, what do you think?" She gestured around the room with a circular dais at one end. Tyra studied the man-sized chamber curiously but was unsure what it was for "Impressive, isn't it?"

"Very," Martha nodded.

Tish grinned at her teasingly "And two nights out in a row for you. That's dangerously close to a social life."

"If I keep this up, I'll end up in all the gossip columns," Martha groaned playfully. Tyra shook my head at their interaction. It reminded her of how she was with my siblings. Or Nik and Kol most of all. Elijah and Finn were mostly too protective to banter with. Plus, they were killjoys most of the time. Rebekah was a bit complicated. She loved her, of course, she did but we always had different interests.

"You might, actually," Tish snorted "You should keep an eye out for photographers. And Mum, she's coming too. Even dragging Leo along with her."

Martha blinked in surprise "Leo in black tie? That I must see." She seemed to remember her tag-alongs when the Doctor shifted behind her "This is – er – the Doctor and Tyra."

"Hello," the Doctor smiled while Tyra just waved with a small nod.

Tish frowned "Are they with you?"

"Yeah."

"But they're not on the list," Tish pointed out "How did they get in?"

Martha sighed "They're my plus ones… plus two? Whatever."

"So, this Lazarus, he's your boss?" the Doctor asked Tish curiously.

"Professor Lazarus, yes," Tish nodded "I'm part of his executive staff."

Martha rolled her eyes "She's in the PR department."

"Head of the PR department, actually," Tish huffed.

Tyra hummed "Congrats, then."

"Thanks," Tish smiled lightly before turning back to her sister "I put this whole thing together."

"So… Do you know what the Professor's going to be doing tonight?" the Doctor asked, once again drawing the attention to himself "That looks like it might be a sonic microfield manipulator."

Tish looked like she barely withheld a groan "He's a science geek. I should have known. Got to get back to work now." She pointed at Martha "I'll catch up with you later."

"Science geek?" the Doctor repeated with a puzzled frown "What does that mean?"

Tyra snorted in amusement and exchanged a glance with Martha "You're obsessively enthusiastic about it."

"Oh, nice," the Doctor nodded.

"That's not a good thing," Tyra pointed out "Normally at least."

Martha waved her hand "It really depends on the context," she agreed.

"Martha," the voice from the phone called out from behind them.

Martha's face lit up "Mum," she exclaimed, rushing over to an older woman in a tasteful golden-brown dress.

Martha's mother looked surprised by the hug "Alright," she raised her eyebrow, pulling away "What's the occasion?"

"What do you mean?" Martha asked, her expression turning innocent "I'm just pleased to see you, that's all."

"You saw me last night," Francine pointed out.

Tyra made a small noise, catching the Doctor's attention "You actually got the day right for once. I'm impressed."

"Hey," he muttered "I'm not that bad."

"Do you want me to start listing things again?" Tyra asked, tilting her head to look up at him.

The Doctor held up his hands in surrender "No, no. I'll pass."

Tyra grinned smugly "Thought so." Her hand reached up to grab at the necklace that had slipped under her shirt "Hey, I never asked… What does that mean anyway?"

The Doctor just smiled mysteriously "Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Yes, I rather would," Tyra nodded emphatically "Please?"

"Nope," the Doctor grinned, ducking a light hit to his ribs "Good luck finding out about it."

Tyra huffed and crossed her arms "I hate you."

"You love me," he teased.

"I just went home," Martha told her mother, her voice rising a bit to drone out Tyra and the Doctor's whispering.

Francine crossed her arms in disbelief "On your own?"

Martha sighed when she saw where her mother was looking "These are friends of mine. Tyra," she gestured to Tyra "And the Doctor."

"Doctor what?" Martha's mother asked.

Martha shook her head "No, it's… just the Doctor. We've been doing some work together."

Leo reached his hand out "You alright, mate?"

"It's lovely to meet you, Mrs Jones," the Doctor remarked, shaking their hands "Heard a lot about you."

"Have you?" Francine asked, glancing at her daughter "What have you heard, then?"

The Doctor froze for a moment "Oh, you know, that you're Martha's mother and… Er, no, actually, that's about it."

Tyra raised her hand to her forehead with a groan "Shut up," she muttered to him "Just… Do yourself a favour and stop talking."

"Why did I think this was a good idea again?" Martha asked Tyra.

"Don't ask me," she shrugged.

The Doctor shot them a look "Why are you two always ganging up on me?"

"Because you deserve it," both Martha and Tyra chorused with matching smirks.

Tyra shook my head and smiled at Francine a little "Anyway, Martha has been a huge help in a joined project the Doctor and I were working on."

"What is this project then?"

"I'm afraid that I won't be of much help with that explanation," she smiled sheepishly, trying to make her story seem as real as possible "Most of what's going on is way over my head. I'm only here for my knowledge of History."

Martha nodded "We have been trying to get a paper together," she said, going along with Tyra's idea "About illnesses through the ages and an educated guess of how it will be in the future."

"Is that so?" Martha's mother questioned "And how did you meet?"

Tyra glanced at the medical student "The Doctor needed to go to the hospital yesterday and – well, Martha seemed the right candidate to help us, so we asked her and she said yes."

Francine was about to open her mouth to ask something else when the old man from the news – Professor Lazarus tapped on his glass, making the crowd quiet down "Ladies and gentlemen, I am Professor Richard Lazarus and tonight I am going to perform a miracle. It is, I believe, the most important advance since Rutherford split the atom, the biggest leap since Armstrong stood on the moon. Tonight, you will watch and wonder. Tomorrow, you will wake to a world with will be changed forever." He walked to the chamber, slipping inside as a pair of scientists started up the machine. The four columns around the chamber started to rotate around, pouring energy into the machine. It only took a minute or so before an alarm sounded.

The Doctor startled into action "Something's wrong," he breathed, making his way to the scientists "It's overloading." Sparks flew from the controls followed by smoke. That made the Doctor rush over while getting out his sonic.

"Somebody stop him," an older woman in a too fancy dress shouted "Get him away from those controls."

The Doctor glared at her "If this thing goes up, it'll take the whole building with it. Is that what you want?" He tried the controls for several more moments before he finally pulled out the power cable. Martha and Tyra rushed over to him when the contraption slowed down and stopped "Get it open."

Martha pulled the door open as a young man staggered out of it. Lazarus straightened up and Tyra wrinkled her nose. He smelled wrong… Like – His blood was wrong somehow "Ladies and gentlemen, I am Richard Lazarus. I am seventy-six years old and I am reborn."

"He did it," the rude old woman from before breathed with a wide grin on her face "He actually did it." It was then and there that Tyra really started to dislike her. In fact, she disliked most of the recent nobility. They were… worse than back when we still mingled with them. More entitled, she guessed.

While Lazarus moved towards the crowd of people, Martha and Tyra joined the Doctor by the controls. Martha watched the man warily "It can't be the same guy. It's impossible. It must be a trick."

"I don't think it is," Tyra spoke up "He's still the same, kind of at least. There's something weird about him though. He doesn't smell quite right."

"What just happened then?" Martha questioned, seemingly trusting her judgement.

The Doctor stared at the not-so-old-anymore man "He just changed what it means to be human." He kept an eye on the man, walking over once he saw him grabbing a tray of finger food.

"Richard," the stuck-up lady exclaimed in shock.

Lazarus barely reacted, instead shoving food into his mouth "I'm famished," he mumbled through a mouth full of food.

"Energy deficit," the Doctor said, coming to a stop next to the man "Always happens with this kind of process."

Lazarus raised his eyebrow "You speak as if you see this every day, Mister…?"

"Doctor. And well, no, not every day," the Doctor corrected "But I have some experience with this kind of transformation."

"That's not possible," Lazarus scoffed.

The Doctor accepted the unspoken challenge "Using hypersonic sound waves to create a state of resonance. That's inspired."

"You understand the theory, then," Lazarus nodded.

"Enough to know that you couldn't possibly have allowed for all the variables," the Doctor pointed out.

Lazarus shrugged unconcernedly "No experiment is entirely without risk."

The Doctor snorted, jabbing his finger over his shoulder to where the machine was "That thing nearly exploded. You might as well have stepped into a blender."

"You're not qualified to comment," the old woman sniffed.

Tyra tilted my head "And you shouldn't speak of what you don't know."

"How dare… Do you know who I am?" she gaped, glaring at Tyra angrily.

Tyra started back, totally and utterly unimpressed "No idea. And I don't particularly care either."

"I'm Lady Thaw."

"And I'm Lady Mikaelson," she shot back "The difference between the two of us is that I don't have to use my title as a weapon."

The Doctor tugged Tyra back some more "Tyra, stop."

She huffed "She started it."

"Eh, that point can be argued," the Doctor murmured "Hush now." He turned back to Lazarus, his expression turning serious "If I hadn't stopped it, it would have exploded."

"Then I thank you, Doctor," the Professor said reluctantly "But that's a simple engineering issue. What happened inside the capsule was exactly what was supposed to happen. No more, no less."

Martha stepped forward "You've no way of knowing that until you've run proper tests."

"Look at me," Lazarus gestured to himself "You can see what happened. I'm all the proof you need."

Lady Thaw nodded in agreement "This device will be properly certified before we start to operate commercially."

"Commercially?" Martha choked "You are joking. That'll cause chaos."

"Didn't you know, Martha? Some people will do everything to stay young forever," Tyra told her quietly. She had seen it time and time again. People trying to get someone to turn them, just so they could live longer, better… Even when they didn't know about vampires, they tried tonics and 'wonder medicines' that are supposed to let them live longer.

Lazarus shook his head "Not chaos, change. A chance for humanity to evolve, to improve."

"This isn't about improving," the Doctor muttered "This is about you and your customers living a little longer."

"Not a little longer," Lazarus pointed out "A lot longer. Perhaps indefinitely."

Tyra snorted but kept silent. There is no way mother nature will let anyone live without a way to kill them and constantly de-ageing oneself was definitely not something the laws of nature would approve of. Her parents wanted to make their children completely invincible but that wasn't possible. There is still a way to kill them – technically. Even if the others burned the tree down. Tyra was sure that there were at least some stakes still left with either Esther's body or Mikael.

Lady Thaw turned away from them "Richard, we have things to discuss… upstairs." And wasn't it clear what she meant by that?

Lazarus nodded absentmindedly "Goodbye, Doctor. In a few years, you'll look back and laugh at how wrong you were." He kissed Martha's hand, nodding to Tyra before leaving with Lady Thaw. Either he thought Tyra looked young enough for him not getting away with that hand kiss thing or he had seen her glare, daring him to try it.

"Oh, he's out of his depth," the Doctor sighed, shaking his head "No idea of the damage he might have done." He looked down at me "Did you get anything else from him?"

Tyra shook her head "No, but something's definitely up with him. It sounded like there was something shifting under his skin. Not too noticeable but I could hear it."

"And didn't you say he smells different?" the Doctor questioned, narrowing his eyes in thought.

"Yeah," Tyra murmured "But I – I really don't know what it is. It's not familiar at all."

Martha grinned lightly, holding up her hand "How about we do our own tests? After all, I have just collected a DNA sample."

The Doctor mirrored her grin "Oh, Martha Jones, you are a star."

* * *

They were crowded around a computer screen, looking at the DNA displayed there "Amazing," the Doctor whistled, sounding a mix between impressed and slightly horrified.

Martha frowned at the monitor "What?"

"Lazarus' DNA," the Doctor pointed out.

Tyra blinked at the picture in slight confusion "There's nothing different, is there?" Just as she said that the image changed once before returning to normal "Never mind."

"Oh, my God," Martha gasped "Did that just change? But it can't have…"

"Is that what I heard?" Tyra asked curiously "Him changing?"

The Doctor tilted his head "You didn't hear his DNA."

Tyra shot him an annoyed and unimpressed look "You don't say," she deadpanned "I could have gotten that myself but if his DNA is changing, his body should be as well, no?"

"Maybe," the Doctor nodded "Possibly. Most likely."

Martha shook her head next to Tyra "But that's impossible. It can't have changed."

"That makes two impossible things we've seen so far tonight," the Doctor pointed out "Don't you love it when that happens?"

"That means that Lazarus changed his own molecular pattern," Martha pointed out, her forehead wrinkled thoughtfully.

The Doctor hummed "Hypersonic sound waves to destabilise the cell structure, then a metagenic programme to manipulate the coding in the protein strands." He paused for a moment, gesturing with his hands "Basically, he hacked into his own genes and instructed them to rejuvenate."

"But they're still mutating," Martha pointed out.

"Because he missed something," the Doctor explained "Something in his DNA has been activated and won't let him stabilise. Something that's trying to change him."

Martha raised her eyebrows, her expression turning into dread "Change him into what?"

"I don't know," the Doctor admitted with a sigh "But I think we need to find out."

"Lady Thaw said they were going upstairs," Tyra murmured "Maybe that is a place to start. Even if I really don't want to see what they've been doing…"

Martha shot me a look "What?"

"Didn't you see that she was all over him?" Tyra blinked "It was subtle but… They definitely had something going on."

"Does it matter?" the Doctor asked, his voice holding a hint of annoyance "Let's go."

Tyra huffed, following after him "Sorry, brings back bad memories. I really don't enjoy these circles anymore. Actually, I never really did. I coped but… Eh."

They walked upstairs, looking for Lazarus' office, hoping to find the man before anything bad could happen. Martha looked around, wrinkling her nose at the high handedness of the office "This is his office, alright."

"So where is he?" the Doctor murmured, looking around the large room.

Martha shrugged, watching Tyra as she frowned. There was a smell in the air – one that she knew all too well "Don't know," Martha said "Let's try back at the reception… Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Tyra nodded absentmindedly, walking around the desk "It smells like death."

Martha peeked over the desk, seeing what Tyra was seeing "Is that Lady Thaw?" she questioned in horror when she saw the skeleton sticking out from behind the desk.

"Used to be," the Doctor breathed, crouching down next to the woman "Now it's just a shell. Had all the life energy drained out, like squeezing the juice out of an orange. Or like a vampire drinking blood." He sent Tyra a quick smirk "Only with – you know, life energy."

"Lazarus?" Martha asked.

The Doctor shrugged "Could be."

"Does that mean he has changed already or he is gathering enough energy to change?" Tyra frowned, turning away from the corpse.

"That is the question," the Doctor pointed out "You both saw the DNA. It was fluctuating. The process must demand energy. This might not have been enough."

Martha paled "So he might do this again?"

"Is that even a question?" Tyra asked.

"You're probably right," Martha agreed "We should find him. And quickly."

The Doctor nodded, moving back towards the elevators, pressing the button "I hate this suit," he grumbled.

"I told you and I will tell you again," Tyra rolled my eyes "This is so not the suit's fault."

"I so don't believe you," the Time Lord shook his head.

As soon as the doors opened in the reception room, Martha craned her neck, looking around "I can't see him."

"He can't be far," the Doctor pointed out "Keep looking. Ty, see if you can sniff him out."

Tyra raised my eyebrows "What am I? A dog?"

"Go fetch," the Doctor shot back with a grin.

Tyra was about to tell him exactly what she thought when Leo joined them "Are you alright, Marth? I think Mum wants to talk to you."

"Have you seen Lazarus anywhere?" Martha asked, ignoring the remark about her mother.

Leo nodded "Yeah, well, he was getting cosy with Tish a couple of minutes ago."

Martha swallowed "With Tish?"

"Ah, Doctor," Martha's mother called out, stopping in front of them with a glass of champagne in her hand.

"Where did they go?" the Doctor demanded, staring at Leo urgently.

Leo blinked in surprise "Upstairs, I think. Why?"

"Doctor…" Francine started, letting out a gasp when the Doctor hurried past her, spilling her drink all over her arm and the right side of her dress "I'm speaking to you."

Martha rushed after the Doctor while Tyra grabbed a napkin, handing it to the woman "You alright? I'm really sorry about him."

"It's not your fault," Francine sighed, taking the napkin with a small, thankful smile.

"Still," Tyra sighed "The Doctor has a thing about pissing off people without meaning to."

Martha's mother raised an eyebrow "I can believe that. How long have you known him?"

Tyra bit my lip "Erm… About two or two and a half years."

"Here," a man said, holding out a glass of champagne to the older woman "I think you're going to need one of these."

"Mr Saxon," Martha's mother gaped, her eyes widened a little upon seeing the man. She took the glass gratefully "Thank you."

Tyra looked at him, slightly curious why Martha's mother seemed so awed by the man's appearance "I take it I should know who you are?"

"Mr Saxon runs for Prime Minister," Francine pointed out.

"Okay," Tyra nodded before muttering to herself "No wonder that I didn't know. Surprisingly, I don't care much either."

Saxon mustered her with a weird look in his eyes. If Tyra didn't know any better, she'd say that he knew about her somehow. But that was impossible, right? Tyra had never seen this man before. There was something about him though, something she couldn't put my finger on "I take it you're not going to vote for me, then?" A small hint of amusement swung in his tone as his eyes trailed down to the necklace around her neck. His gaze hardened as he forcefully tried to unclench his jaw.

"Not a British citizen," Tyra shrugged, glancing over her shoulder. The Doctor wasn't back yet and that was slightly worrying.

"You have a British accent," Martha's mother frowned.

Tyra sent her a mischievous grin, already starting to move in the direction of the elevators when she saw the lights flicker lightly "I do have an accent but it's not British. Excuse me."

"Tish, isn't there another way out of here?" the Doctor demanded, bursting out of the door to the stairwell.

Tish nodded "There's an exit in the corner but it'll be locked now."

"Ty, setting fifty-four. Hurry." He shoved the sonic into Tyra's hands before shooing them away to address the rest of the people in the room "Listen to me. You people are in serious danger. You need to get out of here right now."

A woman in the crowd scoffed in disbelief "Don't be ridiculous. The biggest danger here is choking on an olive."

Tyra froze for a moment when a very mutant Lazarus appeared. That was what the smell was. Scorpion? Something like that? She didn't even want to know how that guy had something in his DNA that triggered… that. The mutant jumped down from the mezzanine, smashing a table as people all around started to panic, running towards the locked doors.

"Mum, get back," Leo called out somewhere near Tyra.

She turned in the direction of the voice, seeing Lazarus sending a table at Leo, hitting him "Martha, go and look after him. I'll get the exit open." Tyra rushed through the crowd, trying not to get trampled. As soon as she was close enough to the door she glanced down at the screwdriver in her hand before just kicking the door in. Somehow that always seemed to work better "Out, everyone out," she shouted over the screams as she fought her way back to where the Doctor and Martha were.

"No," the Doctor called out before seeing Lazarus standing over the woman who had spoken earlier "Get away from her." Tyra grimaced when her desiccated corpse fell to the ground, causing even more panic.

"Leo," Francine gasped, going to help Martha and Leo "Martha."

Tyra came to a stop next to the Doctor when Lazarus turned on the Jones family. The Doctor cursed under his breath "Lazarus, leave them alone." He shoved Tyra to the side when Lazarus turned towards us "Go, Ty."

"Really?" she huffed, crouching down next to Leo who was still on the ground "Are you alright?"

Martha shook her head "He's got a concussion."

"What is the Doctor doing?" Tish gasped, seeing the Doctor talking to the mutant.

"Buying us some time," Tyra told her, grabbing Leo's arm gently "So let's get a move on. I don't like leaving him to fend for himself for longer than necessary."

Martha grabbed Leo's other arm, helping Tyra to lead him towards the doors "Tish, move," she hissed at her sister "We need to get out of here."

* * *

Downstairs, people were piling up against the glass doors, trying desperately to get out of the laboratory "We can't get out," Tish called out "We're trapped."

"No, we're not," Martha shot back "Ty?"

Tyra glanced at the doors critically for a moment before pushing through the people again. Tish frowned "What are you doing?" she questioned.

"You'll see," Tyra told her, kicking against the doors with all her strength. They were better locked than the exit door from earlier, so it needed a little more of a kick. It might have been a little too much though. The door bounced off the glass wall behind it and shattered "Oops?"

Martha grabbed her arm as soon as everyone was outside "We have to go back."

"I do," Tyra told her, gently pushing her towards her family "You stay with your family. I think they need you more."

"Are you sure?" Martha asked.

Tyra grinned lightly "I'm very sure. Make sure they're alright. That's more important. I can handle looking after the Doctor for now."

Martha nodded "Alright. And Ty? Be careful in there."

"I'll be fine," she told her before running back inside, listening for any noises "Now, where is he?" Tyra muttered to herself, not stopping in her run. There was a loud – very loud explosion somewhere close by "Never mind. Follow the explosion it is."

It didn't take long for her to run into the Doctor "What are you doing here?"

"You didn't think I'd let you do this on your own, did you? Plus, I've still got this." She held up the sonic with a small smirk "I kicked in the doors in, so there was no need for that."

The Doctor shook his head "You have a thing for kicking in doors, don't you? How many does that make?"

Tyra shrugged "Lost track. Anyway, where is Lazarus?"

"I blasted him," the Doctor gestured.

"Meaning?" Tyra asked wearily.

A roar sounded behind us "It annoyed him, I'd say."

"Oh, you think?" she snorted, running after him, hoping that he knew what he was doing. If not, Tyra would have to fight. She blinked when he stopped in reception "Please tell me that you have a plan."

The Doctor grabbed her arm, pulling her to the manipulator chamber on the dais "We can't lead him outside. Come on, get in."

Tyra leaned against the far side of the chamber, listening to the mutant's loud approach "Tell me what you think," she murmured, watching the Doctor "He knows we're here."

"I know," the Doctor nodded "But this is his masterpiece."

Realization dawned on her "He won't destroy it."

"Exactly. Not even to get at us."

"There's just one thing… We're trapped in here," Tyra told him "This is Downing Street all over again."

The Doctor shot her a disgruntled look "What is it with you referencing old adventures?"

Tyra shrugged "Maybe I want you to get your head out of your ass and change your mind about leaving Martha at home."

"Why are you so against leaving Martha?" the Doctor frowned, getting out his sonic again. He glanced over at Tyra before sliding to the ground, starting to work on whatever he was planning.

"Because she's good," Tyra remarked "She's brilliant and I really like her. I want to see what else she can do and to be honest."

The Doctor hummed "Alright, then," he smiled, looking up for a short moment "If that's really what you want."

"Why were you so against it anyway?" she questioned, stiffening when she heard Lazarus closing in.

The Doctor shook his head, focussing back on whatever he was doing "I need your help for a moment. Can you hold this?"

Tyra sank to my knees, barely managing to squeeze down next to the Doctor in the tiny chamber. The two of them were slightly closer than she would have liked since being this close to the Doctor was a little distracting "Sure. What are you doing anyway?"

"I'm trying to set the capsule to reflect the energy rather than receive it," he told her just as the chamber whirred to life.

Tyra shivered "Hurry up then. I really don't want to know what I'll turn into. Being a vampire is more than enough without having to worry about being a giant scorpion mutant thing."

"Yes, yes," the Doctor grumbled "Just one more, alright. Hold this." Tyra adjusted her hands slightly before the Doctor let out a triumphant noise. There was a big blast and the sound of Lazarus hitting the ground as the machine stopped, smoking a little. The Doctor looked behind him once they stepped out "It really shouldn't have taken that long to reverse the polarity." He swallowed, looking away when he caught Tyra's eyes "I must be out of practice."

"Right," she muttered, seeing a naked Lazarus lying face down "Well, this is awkward. And a little pitiful."

The Doctor sighed, kneeling down next to the dead man "Eliot saw that too. This is the way the world ends. Not with a bang but with a whimper."

"Are we talking Earth world or universe world? Because the way I remember, Platform One was very… bang-y."

"Alright," the Doctor huffed "I got it. You can stop backtracking now. I was there for all those adventures."

Tyra grinned "But then I wouldn't be able to annoy you into doing what I want."

"That… You… Urgh," the Doctor groaned, running a hand down his face.

Tyra patted his chest, barely suppressing the laughter at his expression "I'm getting the paramedics. Are you staying with him?"

"Sure," the Doctor nodded "I want to check something before they take him."

"Have fun," she told him, jogging down the stairs and out of the doors where everyone was still milling around. A little down from the door, an ambulance was waiting. Tyra walked past Martha and her family, giving her a nod before coming to a stop next to the open back of the ambulance "Lazarus is inside."

The paramedics looked up "What happened?"

Tyra raised my hands "The Doctor will tell you what you need to know. He's inside with the body."

"Alright, thank you."

"What happened?" Martha asked as soon as Tyra came to a halt next to her.

She tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear and sighed "I'll tell you later, alright?"

Martha nodded "Alright. But you're okay? And the Doctor?"

"We're both fine," she soothed, looking over her shoulder when she felt the Doctor's familiar presence at her back "You got what you wanted?"

"I have," the Doctor inclined his head before smiling at Martha's mother who was glaring at him "Mrs Jones. I…" He was cut off when the woman slapped him hard.

Francine gritted her teeth "Keep away from my daughter."

"Mum, what are you doing?" Martha gasped.

"All the mothers," the Doctor grumbled while Tyra tilted his head, looking at his reddened cheek with a small smirk "Every time."

"Better be glad that mine is dead, then," she told him.

He looked down "It's not your parents that I'm scared of. It's your brothers."

"Well, you met two of them," Tyra pointed out "The worst, actually. I think you'll be fine."

"He is dangerous," Martha's mother exclaimed, jabbing her finger in the Doctor's direction "I've been told things."

Martha shook her head in confusion "What things? When? I was with you the whole time."

"Look around you," Francine gestured "Nothing but death and destruction."

"This isn't his fault," Martha defended the Time Lord "He saved us, all of us."

Leo nodded "And it was Tish who invited everyone to this thing in the first place. I'd say technically, it's her fault." Tish elbowed her brother in annoyance when a crash sounded.

"Come on," the Doctor muttered, tugging Tyra along gently. She followed him, Martha and Tish running after us with Francine protesting behind them. When they reached the site of the crash, the back of the ambulance was open and only contained desiccated corpses of the men Tyra had spoken to earlier. The Doctor grimaced at the scene "Lazarus, back from the dead," he spat "Should have known, really." He scanned the area with his sonic screwdriver.

"Where's he gone?" Martha questioned, looking around.

The Doctor gestured "That way. The church."

"Cathedral," Tish corrected, making all of them look at her "It's Southwark Cathedral. He told me."

Martha looked up at the Cathedral "Do you think he's in there?"

The Doctor nodded, already on his way inside "Where would you go if you were looking for sanctuary?"

* * *

They walked up to the altar where Lazarus was shivering, wrapped in a red blanket "I came here before," he murmured "A lifetime ago. I thought I was going to die then. In fact, I was sure of it. I sat here, just a child, the sound of planes and bombs outside."

"The Blitz," the Doctor realized, his voice softening slightly.

Lazarus looked up "You read about it."

"I was there," the Doctor pointed out "Tyra was as well."

Lazarus scoffed "You're too young."

The Doctor grinned a little "So are you."

Lazarus let out a laugh that ended with a groan as his body made painful cracking sounds. His transformation was very similar to that of a werewolf, actually. Now that Tyra saw it happening… Maybe what happened to his DNA was similar to what happened after a werewolf triggered its gene. When his pain subsided, he continued speaking softly "In the morning, the fires had died and I was still alive. I swore I'd never face death like that again. So defenceless. I would arm myself, fight back, defeat it."

"That's what you were trying to do today?" the Doctor asked with a frown.

"That's what I did today," Lazarus pointed out.

Tyra made a small sound "Yeah, no. People died, Lazarus. I think it's safe to say that your experiment failed."

"They were nothing," Lazarus spat "I changed the course of history."

The Doctor crossed his arms "Any of them might have done too. You think history's only made with equations? Facing death is part of being human. You can't change that."

"No, Doctor," Lazarus shook his head "Avoiding death, that's being human. It's our strongest impulse, to cling to life with every fibre of being. I'm only doing what everyone before me has tried to do. I've simply been more successful."

"Look at yourself," the Doctor gestured "You're mutating. You've no control over it. You call that a success?"

Lazarus shrugged "I call it progress. I'm more now that I was. More than just an ordinary human."

"There's no such thing as an ordinary human," the Doctor said as Lazarus convulsed again.

Martha stepped towards them, lowering her voice "He's going to change again any minute."

"I know," the Doctor whispered back "If I can get him up into the bell tower somehow, I have an idea that might work."

Martha looked up "Up there?"

Lazarus groaned "You're so sentimental, Doctor. Maybe you are older than you look."

"I'm old enough to know that a longer life isn't always a better one." Here he sent Tyra a sad smile and squeezed her hand "In the end, you just get tired. Tired of the struggle, tired of losing everyone that matters to you, tired of watching everything turn to dust. If you live long enough, Lazarus, the only certainty left is that you'll end up alone."

"That's a price worth paying," Lazarus told them.

Tyra shook my head at him "You might think that now but that will change. You won't stop losing people you care about – and it will continue until you don't care anymore and just want to die. To leave the pain and the suffering of the world. There is nothing good about living forever."

"I will feed soon," Lazarus rasped, ignoring what she had said.

The Doctor stepped closer to him "I'm not going to let that happen."

"You've not been able to stop me so far," Lazarus pointed out.

"Leave him, Lazarus," Martha called out from further away than she had been just a minute ago. Tyra looked around in confusion to see her backing towards the staircase to the tower "He's old and bitter. I thought you had a taste for fresher meat."

"Martha, no," the Doctor shouted.

Lazarus lunged for Martha who started running, her sister only a step behind "What are you doing?" Tyra heard Martha panting.

"Keeping you out of trouble," Tish shot back.

"Doctor," Martha shouted "The tower."

The Doctor stared after them for the shortest of moments before he hurried to the transept, underneath the central tower "Where are they?" he asked before raising his voice "Martha?"

Martha looked down from the passageway for a moment "Doctor?"

"Take him to the top," the Doctor called to her "The very top of the bell tower, do you hear me?"

Martha nodded "Up to the top."

"Martha," Tyra heard Tish breath, her voice shaking the tiniest bit.

"Then what?" Martha asked, still looking down.

"Martha, come on," Tish hissed, tugging at her sister's arm. The two of them disappeared, running further up as Lazarus followed them.

Tyra stayed where she was for a moment while the Doctor headed for the organ loft. She reluctantly ripped her eyes from the passageway, trudging after the Time Lord.

"Hypersonic sound waves," the Doctor muttered when she entered "Inspired." He stuck his sonic into the power socket before pulling out the stop. His gaze caught Tyra's "I'm sorry in advance. I hope it's a good acoustic in here." He pressed on both pedals before Tyra could do more than catch up to what he was going to do.

As soon as he started playing, Tyra hissed, clutching her ears. No wonder she never went to church – other than the fact that she wasn't Christian. This was more than unpleasant. She heard the Doctor's murmuring voice but couldn't make out the words. A moment later, Tyra more than regretted not leaving as soon as he started playing. The noise got louder and louder, making her fall to the ground, clutching at her ears tighter than before.

Over the notes of the organ, she could make out a very dull thump somewhere close and breathed a sigh of relief when the Doctor stopped playing "Martha?" the Doctor called out.

"I'm okay," she called back after a few tense minutes in which Tyra had climbed to my feet, massaging her now aching ears. She wiggled her finger around in them carefully, trying to get the noise to stop "We're both okay."

"Are you alright?" the Doctor asked, turning to Tyra.

She glared "Next time, give me a bit more of a warning, would you? Because I'm not sure how much more my ears can take."

"Sorry," the Doctor grinned unrepentantly.

"Oh, you will be," Tyra huffed, thinking about how she could make him pay for what he did.

At the bottom of the tower, Lazarus was lying, his body twisted with more than a few broken bones. He had turned back into an old man. The Doctor closed his eyes gently as Martha and Tish came running out of the passageway. Martha threw her arms around the Doctor in a hug "I didn't know you could play."

"Oh well," the Doctor shrugged "You know if you hang around with Beethoven, you're bound to pick a few things up."

Tyra huffed, pressing her hand to her left ear "I can still hear it," she complained.

Martha winced "I completely forgot about your hearing."

"Yeah," she muttered "Be glad that you're not me. Because… Ouch."

"Don't be a baby, Ty," the Doctor told her, ruffling her hair.

Tyra slugged him in the stomach harder than strictly necessary, making him curl his arm over his middle "You more than deserved that. Be glad that it wasn't your face."

"Geez," he gasped, straightening up carefully "I'll definitely think about doing that again."

"Good," she nodded in satisfaction.

* * *

Now that everything was over, they avoided the rest of Martha's family, heading back to her apartment. The Doctor unlocked the Tardis, stepping to the side to let Tyra enter before him "Something else that just kind of escalated, then."

"I can see a pattern developing," Martha grinned "You should take more care in the future. And the past. And whatever other time period you find yourselves in."

The Doctor scratched at his head nervously "It's good fun, isn't it?"

"Yeah," Martha murmured, lowering her eyes a little.

Tyra rolled my eyes "Oh for the love of… Can you get to the point, Doctor? Listening to this is way more painful than it should be." She shoved the Doctor out of the way and held her hand out to Martha "If you still want to, we'd love for you to come along some more."

"I can't go on like this," Martha pointed out, not taking Tyra's hand "One more trip… That's not fair."

"I know," Tyra told her "That's why I'm not saying it. I mean it, Martha. We want you to come with us. Not for one trip, for as long as you want to."

The Doctor made a noise of protest "Hey, my Tardis."

Tyra shrugged "You wouldn't get to the point. If I had let you invite her, we would still be here tomorrow and I would like to get some sleep and feed before we run into another situation."

Martha gaped "Really? I mean, I can really come with you two?"

"Really," They smiled.

Martha wrapped her arms around Tyra happily "Thank you."

"You're welcome," she told her "Now, come on. I think it's time I show you around the Tardis. You'll love the library… and the swimming pool."

The Doctor wrinkled his forehead "The swimming pool is in the library."

"Shh," Tyra hushed him, wrapping her hand around his mouth "No spoilers."

"There's a swimming pool in the library?" Martha asked "That I have to see."

Tyra gestured to the corridor "Let's go then." Before she was out of the console room, she turned back to the Doctor "I'm going to the garden later… If you want to come to?"

The Doctor nodded with a smile "Sure. I'll see you in a bit."


	23. 42

**Okay, so for those noticing the me/she switches that I keep missing. I'm currently going over the story to edit this. I hope I'll catch them all or at the very least most of them. I'm really sorry about this but for some reason this story is still wired as 1st person in my mind which makes me mess up more than I'd like.**

**For those who pointed it out to me. Thank you so much. Again, I'm sorry. Feel free to tell me if I miss something via PM.**

**Enjoy,**

**Nick**

Tyra was once again sitting on the jump seat, watching what was going on in front of her with a small grin. The Doctor was using his sonic on Martha's mobile phone, ensuring that she could call anyone, anytime, anywhere. It was as good as an admission that she was a Companion now. Not that she hadn't been before but now it was official.

"Right," the Doctor nodded, handing the device back to Martha "There we go. Universal roaming. Never have to worry about a signal again."

"No way," Martha gaped "This is too mad. You're telling me I can phone anyone, anywhere in space and time on my mobile?"

The Doctor nodded "As long as you know the area code. Frequent flier's privilege." He gestured to the mobile "Go on, try it." Before she could, though, the Tardis shuddered, causing the Doctor to snap back to attention "Distress signal. Locking on. Might be a bit of…" The two of them were knocked to the floor, while Tyra barely managed not to fall from the seat "Turbulence."

"A bit?" Tyra snorted "Doc, we have to work on your warnings."

He shot her a small glare "Sorry," he huffed with a pout "Come on, then. Let's take a look."

They stepped out of the doors into a small room filled with steam and glowing red "_Distress signal transmitted,_" the computer announced.

"Whoa," the Doctor gasped, waving his hand at the air "Now that is hot."

Martha groaned "Urgh, it's like a sauna in here." Tyra shrugged off the jacket she was wearing, throwing it through the still open doorway behind her.

Meanwhile, the Doctor had started looking around the room curiously "Venting systems," he pointed out "Working at full pelt, trying to cool down. Wherever it is we are." He paused, raising his eyebrow at Martha "Well if you can't stand the heat…"

"Oi," a voice called out as the three of them stepped through a bulkhead door "You three."

"Get out of there," a woman demanded, her tone somewhat panicked.

The man who had spoken first slammed the door close "Seal that door, now."

"Who are you?" the woman blinked as soon as it was done "What are you doing on my ship?"

"Are you the police?"

The Doctor narrowed his eyes "Why would we be police?"

"We got your distress signal," Martha pointed out.

The Doctor paused "If this is a ship, why can't I hear any engines? Ty, do you hear anything?"

Tyra tilted my head "No. Well, except for what I think is the venting but nothing that would be…"

"It went dead four minutes ago," the Captain of the ship cut her off.

Another man walked up "So maybe we should stop chatting and get to Engineering… Captain."

"_Secure closure active,_" the computer announced, causing the crew to startle.

"What?" the Captain frowned.

"The ship's gone mad," the man who had entered last huffed.

Another woman came running towards them, bulkheads slamming shut behind her "Who activated secure closure? I nearly got locked into Area twenty-seven." The last bulkhead slammed shut and the woman seemed to notice us "Who are you?"

"He's the Doctor, I'm Martha and that's Tyra," Martha introduced them with a small wave "Hello."

"_Impact projection forty-two minutes twenty-seven seconds._"

"We'll get out of this," the Captain told her crew "I promise."

Tyra turned my attention to Martha who had gone over to a porthole "Doctor," she called out.

"Forty-two minutes until what?" the Doctor asked.

Tyra pointed to Martha "I think Martha might know," she murmured, leaning to look around her. At the sight, she blinked "A sun? Well, at least it's not a black hole this time. Although… What's worse?"

"Sun," the Doctor gave back absentmindedly before turning to the Captain "How many crew members on board?"

"Seven," the woman replied "Including us."

"We transport cargo across the galaxy," they explained "Everything's automated. We just keep the ship space-worthy."

Tyra looked around "And apparently aren't doing a good job at it?"

The Doctor raised his hand to lightly hit her over the back of her head "Call the others," he told the crew "I'll get you out." He ran to the door they had come through earlier.

"What's he doing?" one of the men demanded, his eyes wide.

"No," the Captain called out "Don't."

As soon as the door was open, the Doctor got knocked back by a blast of heat. Another one of the women put on a welder's mask, pressing the door shut as quickly as possible "But my ship's in there," the Doctor breathed.

"In the venting chamber?"

"It's out lifeboat," the Doctor muttered.

The man next to the captain shook his head "It's lava."

"The temperature's going mad in there." The woman took off the welder's mask, turning towards the newcomers "Up three thousand degrees in ten seconds and still rising."

"Channelling the air," the other man murmured "The closer we get to the sun, the hotter that room's going to get."

Martha let out a shuddering breath, leaning a little closer to me "We're stuck here."

The Doctor huffed "So, we fix the engines, we steer the ship away from the sun. Simple." The others looked at him uncertainly "Engineering down here, is it?"

"Yes," the Captain nodded, raising her eyebrow.

"_Impact in forty twenty-six._"

* * *

On the way to Engineering, the crew introduced themselves as Tyra stayed close to Martha, making sure that she was alright. In almost three years with the Doctor, she was more or less used to being stranded somewhere with no way out "It's going to be alright," she mumbled, nudging Martha's side.

"How can you be so sure?" she asked, turning to look at her.

Tyra pointed to the Doctor "Have you met him? As if this is the first time something like this happened." She grinned at the Doctor's back when she heard him grumbling under his breath "At least the Tardis is still on board and hasn't fallen into a black hole yet."

"Blackhole?" Riley questioned, looking back at her curiously "You mentioned that before."

"It's a long story," Tyra gave back with a sheepish grin "Nothing that someone would believe if you told them. Trust me, I tried."

The Doctor tilted his head "Who did you try to tell?"

"Kol," she shrugged.

"Kol didn't know what a black hole was at the time," the Doctor pointed out "You can't compare that to not believing."

Tyra snorted "No, but he didn't believe that we met the Devil."

Martha choked "Sorry, what?"

"You really don't want to know," Tyra told her.

"Alleged Devil," the Doctor pointed out.

Tyra shot him an annoyed look "Whatever. Anyway, that particular adventure included a lot of things falling – including us."

Martha was about to say something else when the Doctor made a shocked noise "Blimey, do you always leave things in such a mess?"

"Oh, my God," Captain McDonnell gasped, staring at the destruction that was their engineering.

"What the hell happened?" Scannell frowned.

Riley inspected the engine. It was practically a collection of bits and pieces by now "It's wrecked."

The Doctor nodded "Pretty efficiently too. Someone knew what they were doing."

"Where's Korwin?" Captain McDonnell asked, looking around in something akin to panic "Has anyone heard from him or Ashton?"

Scannell shook his head "No."

Martha stepped forward, coming to a halt next to the Doctor "You mean someone did this on purpose?"

The Captain ignored her, walking over to the intercom "Korwin? Ashton? Where are you? Korwin, can you answer?" She let out a sigh, stepping back "Where the hell is he? He should be up here."

"Oh," the Doctor exclaimed, catching a glimpse out of the window "We're in the Torajii system. Lovely. You're a long way from home, Martha. Half a universe away."

"Yeah," Martha mumbled "Feels it."

The Doctor looked at the crew "And you're still using energy scoops for fusion? Hasn't that been outlawed yet?"

"We're due to upgrade next docking," McDonnell explained "Scannell, engine report."

"No response," Scannell shook his head, looking up from what he was doing.

"What?"

Scannell shrugged "They're burned out. The controls are wrecked. I can't get them back online."

The Doctor scoffed lightly "Oh, come on. Auxiliary engines. Every craft's got auxiliaries."

"We don't have access from here," McDonnell muttered "The auxiliary controls are in the front of the ship."

"Yeah," Scannell added "With twenty-nine password sealed doors between us and them. You'll never get there in time."

Martha frowned in confusion "Can't you override the doors?"

"No," Scannell shook his head "Sealed closure means what it says. They're all dead-lock sealed."

"Ty doesn't seem to have a problem with dead-locks," Martha murmured.

Tyra huffed "Just because I kicked in a few doors."

"A few?" the Doctor laughed "I think you opened more dead-locked doors since I knew you than anything else."

"Didn't hear you complain before," she rolled her eyes.

Scannell tilted his head in confusion "How can you…?"

"Best not to ask," Tyra advised "Even though you'll probably find out anyway. Not now, though."

"Nothing's any use, then," Scannell grumbled "We've got no engines, no time and no chance."

The Doctor crossed his arms, shooting the man an unimpressed look "Oh, listen to you. Defeated before you've even started. Where's your Dunkirk spirit? Who's got the door passwords?"

The second man from before popped up from wherever he had been "They're randomly generated," he explained "Reckon I know most of them. Sorry. Riley Vashti."

"Then what're you waiting for, Riley Vashti?" the Doctor gestured "Get on it."

Riley hesitated "Well, it's a two-person job. One, a technish for the questions and the other to carry this." He shot his Captain a look "The oldest and cheapest security system around, eh, Captain?"

"Reliable and simple, just like you, eh, Riley?" McDonnell shot back.

Riley huffed in amusement, putting a massive backpack on "Try and be helpful, get abuse. Nice…"

"I'll help you," Martha offered "Make myself useful."

"It's remotely controlled by the computer panel," Riley explained "That's why it needs two."

The Doctor turned to look at Martha when she went to follow the other man "Oi. Be careful."

"You too," Martha smiled "Ty, make sure he stays out of trouble."

Tyra saluted playfully and had to suppress the laugh at the Time Lord's annoyed expression "Why are the two of you always ganging up on me?"

"Because you're making it too easy for us," she snorted.

"_McDonnell,_" a man's voice came through the intercom "_It's Ashton._"

"Where are you?" the Captain demanded "Is Korwin with you?"

The man was silent for a moment "_Get up to the med-centre now._"

Tyra followed the Doctor and McDonnell past Martha and Riley out of the door, glancing back at the Martha for a moment.

"_Impact in thirty-four thirty-one._"

Tyra looked up at the ceiling "Cheery. Time limits are always very… fun," she grumbled to herself.

"Really?" the Doctor sighed "You're not normally this… Well."

"What?" she challenged, raising my eyebrow.

The Doctor shook his head "Never mind."

It was then that we arrived at the med-centre where a man and a woman were trying to hold another man down. From the looks of it, they were trying to put him in some sort of MRI. Tyra was sure that it wasn't it but she had never seen this machine before "Argh," the man screamed "Stop it."

The woman leaned forward "Korwin, it's Abi. Open your eyes, I need to take a look at you."

McDonnell pushed past them "Korwin," she breathed "What's happened? Is he okay?"

"Help me," Korwin pleaded "It's burning me."

The Doctor let out a long breath "How long's he been like that?" he asked Abi.

"Ashton just brought him in," Abi replied, watching the Doctor scan Korwin with his sonic. Tyra just stayed back, watching what happened from the side-lines. It wasn't as if she could do anything helpful anyway.

"What are you doing?" Captain McDonnell frowned, trying to get closer to the man writhing on the table.

The Doctor shifted, blocking her way "Don't get too close."

"Don't be so stupid," McDonnell snapped "He's my husband."

"And he's just sabotaged our ship," Ashton muttered, glaring at the other man.

McDonnell whirled around "What?"

"He went mad," Ashton explained "He put the ship into secure closure, then he set the heat pulse to melt the controls."

"No way," McDonnell denied "He wouldn't do that."

Ashton shrugged "I saw it happen, Captain."

"Korwin?" the Doctor called out quietly "Korwin, open your eyes for me a second."

Korwin shook his head jerkily "I can't."

"Yeah, course you can," the Doctor encouraged "Go on."

"Don't make me look at you, please," Korwin pleaded, getting more and more panicked by the second.  
The Doctor let out a sigh, taking some sort of gun from a nearby medical tray "Alright," he soothed "Alright. Just relax." He glanced to Abi next to him, gesturing to the gun "Sedative?"

"Yes," Abi nodded.

"What's wrong with him?" McDonnell questioned as soon as Korwin stopped struggling.

The Doctor bit his lip "Rising body temperature, unusual energy readings. Stasis chamber… I do love a good stasis chamber." He turned to Abi again "Keep him sedated in there. Regulate the body temperature. And, just for fun, run a bio-scan and tissue profile on a metabolic detail."

Abi gestured to the monitors "Just doing them now."

"Oh, you're good," the Doctor grinned, coming over to where Tyra was leaning against a wall "Anyone else presenting these symptoms?"

"Not so far," Abi shook her head.

The Doctor nodded "Well, that's something."

"Will someone tell me what is the matter with him?" McDonnell demanded, looking from Abi to the Doctor in annoyance.

"Some sort of infection," the Doctor murmured "We'll know more after the test results. Now, allons-y, back downstairs." When McDonnell didn't move, the Doctor waved his hand in front of her face "Hey. See about those engines. Go. Hey. Go." The Captain hesitantly followed Ashton out of the room, leaving Abi and the two time travellers with an unconscious Korwin "Call us if there's news." When it looked like the woman was about to say something, he tilted his head "Any questions?"

Abi nodded "Yeah… Who are you?"

"I'm the Doctor," he introduced himself "That's Tyra. Come on, let's go to the others."

Tyra hesitated "Actually, I think I'm going to stay here. Make sure everything is alright… I don't think you need me down in Engineering. Not like I can help anyway."

"Are you sure?" the Doctor asked quietly.

"Yeah," Tyra smiled, nudging him towards the door "Go. I'll be here." He nodded, squeezing her shoulder on his way past. She sighed as soon as he was gone and shook her head "Stupid, overprotective friends…"

Abi sent her an amused look "He do that often?"

Tyra grimaced "You have no idea. I don't even know why he's that worried."

"Because he cares, I guess," Abi shrugged.

"I know that but it's not like I can die easily. He should be more worried about himself," Tyra muttered, leaning against the desk next to her. One glance at the monitors taught her nothing at all "Mind explaining what's going on there? That's practically another language for me."

Abi laughed lightly "Sure." She gestured to all the different digits and parts of the screen, explaining what was going on and what she was testing.

Just when she finished explaining everything, the Doctor's voice came through the intercom "_Abi, how's Korwin doing? Any results from the bio-scan?_"

"He's under heavy sedation," she replied "I'm just trying to make sense of this data. Give me a couple of minutes and I'll let you know."

The Doctor hummed in agreement "_Martha? Riley?_" he questioned "_How are you doing?_"

"_Area twenty-nine,_" the medical student called back "_At the door to twenty-eight._"

"Yeah…_ You've got to move faster._"

Martha scoffed lightly "_We're doing our best._"

"_Find the next number in the sequence three one three, three three one, three six seven,_" Riley read out "_What?_"

Tyra was completely focussed on their conversation at this point, keeping quiet as to not distract Abi more than strictly necessary "_You said the crew knew all the answers,_" Martha pointed out.

Riley huffed "_The crew's changed since we set the questions._"

"_You're joking,_" Martha deadpanned.

"_Three seven nine,_" the Doctor cut in before the two could argue any more.

They were quiet for the shortest moment before "_What?_"

"_It's a sequence of happy primes,_" the Time Lord explained "_Three seven nine._"

Tyra frowned in absolute confusion. Happy what? The medical student apparently echoed my sentient "_Happy what?_"

The Doctor let out a groan "_Just enter it,_" he grumbled.

"_Are you sure?_" Riley asked somewhat hesitantly "_We only get one chance._"

"_Any number that reduces to one when you take the sum of the square of its digits and you continue iterating until it yields one is a happy number,_" the Doctor explained with a sigh "_Any number that doesn't… isn't. A happy prime is a number that is both happy and prime. Now type it in."_ His voice lowered a little and Tyra could imagine him running a hand through his hair in frustration "_I don't know, talk about dumbing down. Don't they teach recreational mathematics anymore?_"

Instead of answering him, Martha breathed a sigh of relief "_We're through._"

"_Keep moving,_" the Doctor insisted "_Fast as you can. And Martha? Be careful. There may be something else on board this ship._"

"_Any time you want to unnerve me, feel free,_" Martha scoffed.

Tyra looked over at the intercom "One good thing about this, Martha. It's not the Devil. Doctor, I have a bad case of deja-vu if I'm honest. I may not get any of those stupid readings but…"

"_So, I'm not imagining it,_" the Time Lord sighed "_Abi, got anything?_"

"Not yet," she shook her head "Nothing I would be comfortable with. There are some things I have to recheck first. A few more minutes."

"_Impact in thirty fifty._"

Tyra glared up at the ceiling "Did I ever mention that I hate countdowns? And computers on spaceships? They tend to deliver bad news wherever we go."

"The more I heard from you, the less I want to have your life,_" _Abi murmured, keeping her focus on the screens. Her forehead was wrinkled as her eyes flew over the data.

"And to think you barely heard me mention anything. Maybe I should rethink my life," Tyra remarked jokingly.

"_Doctor?_" Martha asked a moment later.

"_What is it now?_" the Doctor snapped. He seemed to be a little stressed. Not that Tyra didn't understand. Time limits were always nerve-wreaking.

Martha ignored his tone "_Who had the most number ones, Elvis or the Beatles. That's pre-download._"

"_Elvis,_" the Doctor answered "_No. The Beatles… No. Wait. Er, oh… What was that remix?_" He sighed "_I don't know. I am a bit busy._"

"_Fine,_" Martha huffed "_I'll ask someone else._" A moment later "_Ty, do you know?_"

Tyra scratched my head "Do you honestly think I'd know? Hell, I don't even know anyone who would know that."

"_Urgh, alright. Plan C it is,_" Martha sighed, going quiet.

A quiet gasp from Abi alerted Tyra that something was wrong "What is it?" she asked, looking over her shoulder.

She swallowed "Doctor, these readings are starting to scare me._"_

"_What do you mean?_" the Doctor asked urgently.

"Well, Korwin's body is changing. His whole biological make-up._" _Tyra whirled around when a noise caught her attention and froze for a moment. She thought Korwin was sedated but he was getting up… This was bad. She tilted my head and frowned. His heart was way slower than it should be "It's impossible."

Tyra grabbed Abi's arm "We have to get out of here," she hissed at her, keeping her eyes on the man who was slowly walking closer.

"_Tyra? What's going on? Tell me,_" the Doctor demanded.

"Urgent assistance requested," Abi breathed out shakily, her wide eyes glued to Korwin's form.

Tyra shook my head "No time for this." When the man was starting to open his eyes, showing glowing gold, she wrapped her arm around Abi's waist, speeding out of the med-centre as fast as she could. A few corridors away, she slowed down a little "Engineering. Where is it again?" Abi didn't reply, staring at her "Abi. Where do we have to go?"

"T – This way," she stuttered, hurrying back the way that the Doctor and Tyra had walked earlier. She recognized several doors and corridors but it was better to have someone lead me.

"Tyra," the Doctor called out from the other end of the corridor "What happened?"

She gestured over her shoulder "Honestly, I have no idea. But I think that Korwin is possessed by something. His eyes…"

The Doctor tilted his head "What's wrong with his eyes?"

"_Burn with me,_" a low, raspy voice echoed through the intercom.

McDonnell gasped, raising her hand to her mouth "Korwin." She turned to her crew member "Abi, what happened?"

Abi shook her head "His bio-scan results were… weird. I think Tyra might be right with the possession thing. His internal temperature was one hundred degrees, body oxygen replaced by hydrogen. Korwin wasn't infected. He was overwhelmed. Judging from the results he isn't human anymore or at least not completely."

"_Burn with me,_" the voice rasped again.

The Doctor rubbed his hand over his face "It doesn't have to be possession… What else could it be, though? A parasite? A mutagenic virus? Something that needs a host body."

"Stop talking about him like he's some kind of experiment," McDonnell snapped, rubbing Abi's arm gently.

"Where's this ship been?" the Doctor questioned "Have you made planet-fall recently? Docked with any other vessel? Any kind of external contact at all?"

McDonnell gritted her teeth "What is this, an interrogation?"

Tyra raised my eyebrow at her "You're kidding right? Whatever is inside Korwin or whatever happened to him… He almost killed us. If I hadn't been there, Abi would have probably died."

"W – What are you?" Abi questioned, looking up at me "I mean… How did you get us out?"

"Vampire," she shrugged "I'm a vampire." Scannell who had been standing closer to Tyra before took a few steps back. She glanced over at him "I don't bite, you know? At least not normally."

McDonnell inhaled sharply "I need to warn the crew." She walked over to another intercom terminal "Everybody, listen to me. Something has infected Korwin and we don't know where he is at the moment. None of you must go anywhere near him, is that clear?"

"_Understood, Captain,_" Ashton voiced his agreement.

"We need to get to the med-centre," the Doctor murmured, making his way back down the corridors "See if he's still there. Ty, can you hear anything at all?"

Tyra closed her eyes for a moment "No, nothing. No heartbeat, no sound except for the five of us. I'm not positive though," she admitted "His heart was really slow earlier, so it might have stopped already."

Abi furrowed her brow "His heart was normal on the scan."

"It slowed as soon as he stood up, I think," she shrugged.

"So, you can hear heartbeats from a distance?" Scannell questioned, glancing over at her from the corner of his eyes.

Tyra nodded "Yeah. I can hear better, see better, smell better… Erm, basically all my senses are heightened."

The man shuddered "That would be a nightmare."

"It has its advantages," Tyra pointed out "But yeah, occasionally it's more of a curse."

McDonnell looked back "You said that his heartbeat was too slow… Does that mean that his infection is permanent? Abi, is there a way to cure him?"

Abi licked her lips "I don't know."

"Abi? You know our backstory," the Captain pointed out "He kept me honest… I don't want any false hope."

The Doctor glanced over at the younger woman, seeing her struggle "From what I heard… Your husband is gone," he explained quietly "There's no way back, I'm sorry." When McDonnell just nodded, he sighed "Are you certain nothing happened to provoke this? Nobody's working on anything secret? Because it's vital that you tell me."

"I know every inch of this ship," McDonnell replied "I know every detail of my crew's lives. There is nothing."

"Then why is this thing so interested in you?" the Doctor frowned in confusion.

McDonnell sighed "I wish I knew." Just before they entered the med-centre, Tyra listened again. Nothing. When the Doctor raised his eyebrow at her questioningly, she shook my head. As far as she could tell there was no one inside anymore. The Captain entered, looking around "He's gone."

"_Doctor, we're through to area seventeen,_" Martha informed us.

The Doctor nodded "Keep going," he answered "You've got to get to area one and reboot those engines."

"What do we do now?" Scannell questioned "Do we go looking for Korwin?"

"I think it's better, yeah," the Doctor murmured, looking over the test results on the monitor quickly.

McDonnell turned to Abi "Abi, can you go down and help Riley with the rest of the doors? I think having three people there isn't too bad of an idea. Especially since Korwin is around somewhere."

"Erm, yeah, sure," she shrugged "But wouldn't Scannell be better? I'm not good with self-defence."

"You're better than you think," the Captain told her with a small smile.

Abi nodded "Alright. They're in area sixteen, right?"

"That's what they said," Scannell said.

Abi looked at the Captain for another moment before jogging off. The Doctor dragged his eyes away from the screen, his face set in grim determination. Tyra tilted my head "You alright?"

He hummed, wrapping an arm around her shoulder "I'm fine. I just don't understand where this thing is coming from. Whatever it is couldn't have come from nowhere. That isn't how this works."

"But if they say that nothing happened," Tyra pointed out.

"That means that either they're lying." Here McDonnell huffed "Or they don't know."

Tyra looked at the Captain for a moment before leaning against the Doctor a little more "I'm going with the latter one."

"Yeah," the Doctor trailed off, eyes going back to the screen.

"_Doctor,_" Martha shouted panicking "_Doctor. We're stuck in an escape pod off the area seventeen airlock._" The four of them froze, staring at the direction the voice was coming from for a moment before starting in the mention direction "_One of the crew's trying to jettison us. You've got to help us. Tell me you can stop it."_

McDonnell ran ahead of the Doctor and Tyra, panting a little "Why is this happening?"

The Doctor reached out to stop her in what appeared to be a storage area "Stay here," he commanded, looking at them sternly "I mean it this time. Just start those engines." He grabbed Tyra's hand, pulling her along.

Just before they were out of earshot, Tyra heard McDonnell's breathy voice "It's picking off, one by one."

* * *

"_Jettison held,_" Tyra heard as soon as we were getting closer to area seventeen. Not even a moment later, the computer spoke again "_Jettison reactivated._"

The Doctor skidded to a halt when he saw the figure by one of the keypads "That's enough," he growled, glaring at the figure "What do you want? Why this ship?" When no answer came, his voice got louder "Tell me."

Ashton looked over at us for a moment before putting his fist through the keypad. The computer's voice sounded again _"Jettison activated._"

"Come on," the Doctor called out "Let's see you. I want to know what you really are."

Ashton stalked closer to them, stopping when he was nose to nose with the Doctor. He was just beginning to raise his hand to the visor when he doubled over in pain "_Airlock sealed._" As soon as Ashton was standing again, he walked past the Doctor and me, back the way we just came from.

The Doctor turned to the intercom urgently "McDonnell? Ashton's heading in your direction. He's been infected, just like Korwin."

"_Korwin's dead, Doctor,_" Scannell's voice informed them.

The Doctor let out a breath before turning to look through one of the windows in the airlock door "I'm going to save you," he articulated to who Tyra assumed was Martha "I'll save you. I'll save you."

Tyra placed her hand on his arm and glanced out to see the pod floating towards the sun "How do we get her out?"

"Manual," the Doctor exclaimed, straightening up.

"What?" she frowned.

"Scannell," the Time Lord called out "I need a spacesuit in area seventeen now."

"_What for?_"

The Doctor hissed under his breath "Just get down here."

"_Well, go on,_" McDonnell urged.

Scannell hesitated "_Ashton's still out there._"

McDonnell sighed "_I'll deal with him._"

A few minutes later, Scannell hurried towards Tyra and the Doctor with a spacesuit in his hands "What do you plan on doing?"

"I have to go out and get her back. It's the only way," the Doctor explained, grabbing the spacesuit.

Tyra licked her lips uneasily. She really didn't want him to be the one going out. He might be a Time Lord but still… She hated the fact that he was constantly putting himself in danger and she knew that he wouldn't let me go if she asked him. There was only one possibility. She had to restrain him somehow and quick but Tyra didn't like the idea of hitting him or knocking him out. She glanced around until my eyes landed on a side door that didn't seem to have an electric lock in favour of one of those spin wheel things. This could work. She shifted, looking back at the Doctor who was just about to step into the spacesuit. Now or never. She ran forward, dislodging the Doctor's grip from the suit, speeding him to the door.

"What are you doing?" the Doctor demanded, fighting against her grip "Tyra, don't you dare."

She slipped his sonic into her pocket, shoving him into the room, locking the door behind him. From the looks of it, the closet didn't have a way to get out from inside. Stupid design but it suited her purpose just right "I'm sorry," she whispered, placing her hand on the door for a moment. When he slammed his hand against it, Tyra stepped back.

"Dammit, Tyra. Let me out," the Doctor shouted.

Scannell was still standing in the space he had been in, gaping at Tyra in surprise "What…? Why did you do that?"

"I can't let him go out there," she murmured, grabbing the suit "Actually, no. I won't let him go out there and he's too much of an idiot to let me go out. I…" She shook her head "It doesn't matter. I have to get out there."

Scannell looked at her "I can't let you do this."

"Why?"

"You want to open an airlock in-flight on a ship spinning into the sun," Scannell pointed out "No one can survive that."

Tyra tilted her head "I can survive a whole lot more than you think. Hence why it's me doing this."

"It's suicide," Scannell exclaimed, looking over his shoulder at the door the Doctor was banging against "This close to the sun, the shields will barely protect you." He looked at Tyra for a moment, sighing at her determined expression "Do you even know what you're doing?"

She grimaced "Somewhat. The Doctor explained it earlier. Something about re-magnetising the pod."

Scannell sighed "There are four buttons where the pod was. Two of those you have to press. One blue and one green," he explained "Press both of those and pull the lever in the box a little to the right."

"I can do that," she nodded, holding the helmet tightly "Thanks."

"You have to hurry," he murmured "The farther away they're getting, the worse it gets for them."

"What changed your mind?" she asked before realization dawned on her "Abi."

Scannell nodded before pushing Tyra towards the airlock door "Go, now."

Tyra looked over her shoulder as she reached the outer airlock door. One press of the button next to it, caused unfiltered sunlight to stream in. She squinted, shivering as the burning heat washed over her. She gritted her teeth, climbing out, clutching the edge of the airlock as tightly as she could "Come on," she breathed, trying to ignore the pain that was flowing through her body "Come on…" She pressed the buttons Scannell had mentioned before looking for the box. It was just beyond, a tiny bit out of the reach of her arms. Well, crap.

"_Tyra, how're you doing?_"

"I can't reach it," Tyra panted, stretching as far as she could "It burns. Now I'm definitely glad that I didn't let him do this."

"_Come on,_" Scannell urged "_Don't give up now. I know you can do it._"

Tyra bit the inside of her cheek harshly, reaching as far as she could "How mad is he?" she questioned, ripping the cover off the box. Tyra let out the breath that she was holding, pulling the lever down with the rest of my strength.

"_From the shouting… Very. I'm so glad that I'm not you,"_ the man murmured.

"Funny," she remarked, pulling herself back into the airlock "This is the second time I heard this today." As the pod slowly returned to the dock, her eyes drifted past it to the sun. The moment her eyes caught sight of it, she gasped at the invasion in her mind "How?"

"_Close that airlock,_" Scannell shouted "_Now. That pod's going to smash into it._"

"_Stay here,_" Tyra heard McDonnell, her voice faint.

Tyra stumbled backwards, hitting the button before pressing her eyes closed as the burning sensation threatened to overwhelm her. She fell to the floor, trying to contain the heat from the sun, not letting it out of her tight grip. With a desperate strength, she knocked off the helmet, crawling out of the airlock just as the pod docked.

"Are you alright?" Scannell questioned, helping to prop Tyra against a wall "What happened?"

"Tyra," Martha exclaimed, falling to her knees next to her "Are you okay? Where's the Doctor?"

Tyra glanced to my left, bright light shining from her eyes "Don't… Argh."

"Shit," Scannell cursed "The Doctor." He glanced to his two crew members "Abi, come help me with this." Tyra leaned her head back against the wall, grimacing at the effort it took to keep the sun contained.

The Doctor had his ear pressed against the door to the cupboard when he realized that there was no way out of here without help. He was silently steaming, thinking about all the ways he could hurt Tyra. Not that he would but the girl messed up. Badly. A small part of him was flattered that she didn't want him hurt badly enough to risk alienating him but it didn't help.

Outside the door, he could hear a muffled conversation that was getting closer hurriedly "Get me out," he called, hitting his hand against the door.

"Give me a second, Doctor," Scannell replied, opening the wheel with the help of Abi. He had been right. Tyra had indeed gotten the wheel stuck a little. It had needed more force than normal.

The Doctor stumbled out of the storage room, eyes blazing at the man who had just allowed Tyra to put herself in danger "Where is she?" he hissed, seeing Tyra flinch where she was sitting. Not a minute later, his tone changed "Tyra? Ty, what's going on?"

"It's alive," she gasped out, opening her eyes for the shortest moment "The sun… It hurts."

"Damn," the Doctor cursed, holding onto her "Riley, go with Scannell. Get through the rest of the doors. And get me McDonnell here."

Tyra felt Martha's hand grasping hers tightly "I can't… hold it back… for much longer… Doctor."

The Doctor let out another curse before hands tilted her sweaty face up. Regardless of how hot she was, Tyra was shivering. She was about to ask what was going on when she felt the Doctor's lips seal over hers with urgency. His lips were familiar. This – This was different, though. Tyra gasped into the kiss, her eyes opening of its own accord as the sun was being pulled out of her. The more it left her, the narrower her world got until everything went black and she slumped to the ground.

Almost as soon as Tyra slipped to the ground, the Doctor followed suit with a small groan. Ty hadn't been lying. The sun really did hurt in the way it burned through your body, trying to take over. He couldn't let it though, instead, he hurried to find out what was going on here. Why would the sun kill these people? No. He almost gasped as the answer was made clear. The Doctor could feel hands on his face "Doctor?"

He jerked away, knowing that he wouldn't be able to fight the sun forever "Stay away from me," he rasped.

"What happened?" McDonnell questioned, stopping in front of the group. The scene was confusing since she had been so focused on getting the doors open. Tyra was lying on the floor, out cold and the rest of them were crowded around the Doctor who had his eyes closed, a grimace on his face.

"It's your fault, Captain McDonnell," the Doctor groaned in pain "You mined that sun. Stripped its surface for cheap fuel. You should have scanned for life."

The Captain frowned down at him "I don't understand," she admitted.

"That sun is alive. A living organism," the Doctor explained as calmly as he was able to, internally fighting as hard as he could "They scooped out its heart, used it for fuel and now it's screaming."

"What do you mean? How can a sun be alive? Why is he saying that?" she asked, looking over at Martha.

She flinched back when the Doctor opened his eyes "Because it's living in me."

"Oh, my God."

"Humans," the Doctor complained "You grab whatever's nearest and bleed it dry. You should have scanned."

McDonnell shook her head "It takes too long. We'd be caught. Fusion scoops are illegal."

After this, the Doctor dismissed her, thoroughly annoyed that she not only put her own crew in danger but Tyra and Martha as well. He could feel Tyra's presence close to his leg and turned his face to Martha "You've got to freeze me," he pleaded "Quickly."

"What?" Martha blinked, running her hand through the Doctor's sweaty hair. She had checked over Tyra but it seemed like she was just unconscious, trying to heal from whatever it was that the sun did to her. All in all, she shouldn't be out for much longer.

"Stasis chamber," the Doctor explained "You've got to take it below minus two hundred. Freeze it out of me." He stopped to inhale as much air as he could "Freeze it out of me. It'll use me to kill you if you don't. The closer we get to the sun, the stronger it gets." The Time Lord straightened with difficult, stumbling a little before his arms were grabbed by Martha and Abi "Med-centre. Quickly."

"_Impact in seven-thirty._"

* * *

"Tyra," a voice called from further down "Are you alright?"

"Martha," she breathed in relief, letting the medical student pull her up gently "Where's the Doctor?"

Martha pointed behind her "We had to try and freeze him in the med-centre. He told me to leave, though." Tyra didn't wait for more, sprinting off to where the Time Lord was "Ty, don't."

"_Impact in four oh eight._"

Tyra stumbled into the med-centre, seeing the Doctor half inside the stasis chamber "Doc," she breathed, going over to run her hand over his half-frozen face "I'm sorry." This was what she had been trying to stop. She wouldn't have cared if the sun killed her. As long as it wasn't him.

"Ty," he gasped, turning his head into her hand "Get out of here. I can't… I…"

"I'm not leaving," she told him softly "Please, you have to fight it. I know it's hard… Very hard actually but you're stronger than me."

The Doctor's hand shot up, grabbing onto her arm tightly "Don't… Say that… Ever again."

"What?" she frowned.

"You're not weak," he shot back, arching off the table with a shout "I… I can't fight it." Tyra took a couple of steps back when his eyes opened and his voice changed "Give it back or burn with me." His head turned to Tyra "Burn with me."

"_Impact in one twenty-one,_" the computer announced as Tyra scrambled away from the Doctor, her back hitting the wall "_Life support systems reaching critical. Repeat. Life support systems reaching critical. Impact on one oh six._"

The Doctor was getting closer and closer. She might have been able to run but… Why should she? This was her fault. Tyra's fault that he was taken over instead of her. She tried to protect him and messed it up even more…

"_Collision alert. Collision alert. Fifty-eight seconds to fatal impact._"

Tyra was pressing her back against the wall, completely flattening herself as the Time Lord slash sun reached out for her "Burn with me," he rasped.

"_Fuel dump in progress. Fuel dump in progress._"

As soon as those words let the computer, the lights went out in the Doctor's eyes and he slumped, practically landing on top of Tyra. She gasped, her hand going to his face automatically "Doctor," she breathed, burying her face in his hair.

"_Impact averted. Impact averted._"

"Are you alright?" she asked carefully, feeling the Doctor's movement.

The Doctor turned his head to look at her and she flinched away from what she saw. Now that it was all over, the anger and disappointment were returning full force and Tyra just knew that this would end badly for her… Before he could start talking though, Martha ran in, throwing herself at both of them "Doctor. Tyra. You're okay." If they hadn't been on the floor, they probably would have been by now.

On the way to area thirty where the Tardis was waiting for them in a now cold room, the Doctor didn't talk at all, preferring to steam silently.

Martha placed her hand on Tyra's arm, squeezing it gently "It's going to be alright," she whispered "He's just mad."

Tyra shrugged "I know. I messed up but… I couldn't let him get hurt," she muttered, wrapping one of her arms around her stomach.

* * *

A little while later, the Doctor, Martha and Tyra were standing in front of the Tardis with the three of the remaining crew standing in front of them, looking at the Tardis in surprise "This is never your ship," Scannell murmured, blinking at the blue box owlishly.

"Compact, eh?" the Doctor grinned, his hand going to the back of Tyra's neck. She froze for a moment before relaxing again "And another good word, robust. Barely a scorch mark on her."

Martha looked at Riley, Scannell and Abi "We can't just leave you drifting with no fuel."

"We sent out an official mayday," Riley replied with a small smiled. He really seemed taken with Martha. It was nice to see her get some attention as well "The authorities will pick us up soon enough."

Scannell hesitated, wrapping his arm around Abi's waist "Though how we explain what happened…"

"Just tell them what happened," the Doctor murmured "That sun needs care and protection just like any other living thing." His grip on Tyra's neck tightened, turning to pull her into the Tardis with him.

She glanced over her shoulder, throwing them a wave "It was nice to meet you," she called, almost stumbling over the doorway when it came sooner than expected.

As soon as the two of them were inside and by the console, the Doctor turned to Tyra, a hard look in his eyes "I'd say that we need to talk but to be honest… I'm too pissed off to not shout right now."

Tyra looked at him for a moment before lowering her head with a small nod "I'll just…" She gestured to the corridor "You know where to find me." Just before she left, she turned back, her voice soft "I really am sorry. I didn't want you to get hurt."

* * *

The Doctor closed his eyes when he caught Tyra's quiet words. He knew that she was sorry… He knew that he shouldn't be this mad at her. It wasn't like he wouldn't have done something similar if it would have worked. That didn't mean that Tyra didn't mess up. Although – He probably would have ended up possessed anyway.

"So," Martha entered, her tone turning into teasing "Didn't really need you in the end, did we?" At the Doctor's look, she winced "Sorry. How are you… Where's Tyra?"

"Around," the Doctor murmured, his hand going to his pocket.

Before he could get out the Tardis key, Martha started glaring at him "You can't seriously be this stubborn. Just get your head out of your ass and go talk to her. I might not have known you for too long but she blames herself, Doctor."

"What?" he breathed. He had known that Tyra seemed a bit more subdued but not that she was blaming herself for what happened. It wasn't her fault. He chose to take the sun out of her.

"How can you be so freaking blind?" Martha groaned "I swear… Go and talk to her. If you won't, I will."

The Doctor sank onto the jump seat, pulling out the key "Before I forget. Here. You'll need this."

Martha's face lit up "Really?" she asked, taking the key from his hands, looking down at it almost reverently.

"Frequent flier's privilege," the Time Lord shrugged "And for… Well, you know."

Martha was about to say something when a thought crossed her mind "Oh, no… Mum." She hurried off to her room to call her mother in private, leaving the Doctor to his thoughts.

The Doctor looked after her with a small, exasperated smile. He shook his head, making his way to the console to lock the Tardis in the Vortex for a few hours, allow them to rest without drifting off into the depths of the universe.

As soon as he finished, he yelped, taking a step back "What?" he hissed, shaking his hand in annoyance. Another spark from the console made him duck away "Will you stop that?"

The Tardis let out an angry hum, sending him an image of Tyra. The sight made his heart drop. He whirled around, stalking through the corridors to find his girl.

* * *

After the incident in the console room, Tyra had withdrawn to her sanctuary. Instead of going to the Pavilion, she walked further than before, huddling again a huge tree that seemed to shift, hiding her with its leaves.

As soon as she had left the room, fear had started to bloom in the pit of her stomach. What if he threw her out now? What if she had to go back to her life from before? She didn't think that she would be able to survive. In the past three years, Tyra had gotten so close to the Doctor that she couldn't even think of going back to how it was before. The Tardis was her home. Her hand wrapped around the necklace, the promise that the Doctor made and pulled it off with a low sob.

Tears started to flow out of her eyes against her will at the thought of the Tardis. It might sound stupid but the Tardis was as good as a mother to her. She knew when Tyra was feeling bad and tried to cheer her up whenever she could.

A warm hum echoed through her mind, a branch stroked over the top of Tyra's head "I'm sorry," she pleaded. Leaning her head again the bark of the trunk of the tree "I didn't mean to make him mad."

The Tardis let out an angry huff but Tyra had a feeling that it wasn't directed at her.

"You mean that it's not my fault?" Tyra frowned, rubbing one hand over my eyes, trying to get rid of the evidence of her earlier crying.

"Tyra?"

She whirled around in shock at hearing the voice from outside of her tree cocoon. How didn't she hear him coming? "Yeah."

The Doctor raised his hand and made to enter the waterfall of leaves when one of the branches twitched hitting him over the head. He let out a groan and glared up at the sky "Again? Can you stop?"

Tyra patted the trunk of the tree, a small grin stealing its way across her face, her other hand clutching the necklace tightly "It's alright. You can let him in, you know."

"Thanks," the Doctor murmured when he was standing in front of Tyra. He shuffled uncomfortably, biting at his lip.

"I didn't…" Tyra held out her hand "I suppose you want this back?"

He shook his head "Don't. I am the one who should apologize, Ty." Tyra froze, looking up at him "I can't act like I wouldn't have done the same thing. Hell, I did the same thing before. I am a hypocrite for getting mad at you." He reached out to close her hand over the necklace with a small smile "As for this? It's yours."

Tyra licked her lips, lowering her eyes "I don't like you running into these situations. I – I'm less likely to die."

"That doesn't mean that I like seeing you hurt any more than the other way around," the Doctor pointed out, raising his hand to Tyra's cheek "There's something else we need to talk about... Do you remember what happened before you passed out?"

Tyra froze internally before she swallowed down her nervousness "Yes. I… Yes." She chewed on her lip before wrapping her arms around the Doctor's neck, kissing him lightly. As soon as she pulled back, she looked into his eyes deeply "Yes."

The Doctor blinked in confusion before a grin lit up his face "Yes?"

"Yes," Tyra nodded "I'm sorry it took me so long."

The Doctor whirled her around before pressing another, deeper kiss to her lips "I love you, Tyra. And I'm sorry for snapping at you. I was scared that I'd lose you."

"I think that's a problem both of us have," Tyra sighed, leaning her head against his shoulder "We're both too stubborn in trying to protect the other."

"Hmm," the Doctor nodded, nudging their noses together "Yeah… I guess so." Tyra let out a jaw-splitting yawn, causing the Doctor to let out a laugh "Come on. Let's get you to bed."

Tyra sent him a smirk "Will you, now?"

The Doctor's steps faltered before he turned to her "If that's what you want," he shot back.

"Okay, I didn't expect you to go along with it," she snorted "Can we just cuddle?"

"Of course," the Doctor nodded "I know that this is a – sort of – first for you. You set the pace, alright? I'm just happy that you decided to give me – us a chance."


	24. Human Nature

"That's what you call a perfect trip?" Tyra called over the sound of the other two's breathing.

"That's not my fault. Get down," the Doctor shouted as they hurried into the Tardis. He slammed the doors shut behind them, whirling around "Did they see you? Either of you?"

Martha shook her head "I don't know," she admitted.

"But did they see you? Tyra?"

Tyra shook her head. Well, the trip was extravagant for sure… Probably not quite in the way the Doctor had planned but then again… Their trips rarely were. A part of her had hoped that he would finally take them to Barcelona. Oh, well… "No. I don't think they did. They couldn't have. Neither Martha nor I looked back."

The Doctor nodded in relief "Off we go, then." He set the Tardis in motion before letting out a curse as a sound came from the monitor "Argh… They're following us."

"How can they do that?" Martha demanded "You've got a time machine."

"Stolen technology," the Doctor pointed out "They've got a Time Agent's vortex manipulator. They can follow us wherever we go, right across the universe. They're never going to stop, unless…" He straightened up, face set determinedly "I'll have to do it. Martha, Ty, you trust me, don't you?"

Tyra looked into his eyes seriously "What are you doing to do?"

"This all depends on the two of you, alright?"

"What does?" Martha frowned "What are we supposed to do?"

The Doctor held out an ornately decorated pocket watch to Tyra, squeezing her hand in comfort "Take this watch. My life depends on this. This watch, Ty, Martha… The watch is me."

"Right, okay," Martha nodded "Gotcha." She blinked a couple of times before sending him a sheepish grin "No, hold on. Completely lost."

Tyra looked at the watch "Is that the… what's it called? The thing that turns you into any species you want?"

"Sort of," he nodded "It's not the watch that does it but that's where I'm going to be stored. Those creatures are hunters. They can sniff out anyone and me being a Time Lord, well, I'm unique… They can track me down across the whole of time and space."

Martha grumbled "Huh. And the good news is…?"

"They can smell me," the Doctor explained "They haven't seen me. And their life span will be running out, so we hide. Wait for them to die."

Martha tilted her head "But they can track us down."

"That's why he's going to turn himself into a Human," Tyra told her quietly as a headset lowered itself from the ceiling "I have no idea how it works but as long as it does… I'm not going to complain."

Martha nodded "Wait, what do we have to do? As in, Tyra and I?"

"I invented a life story for me, find me a setting and integrate me. The Tardis already took care of everything. Can't do the same for the two of you, though. You'll have to improvise. Or Tyra can compel you what you need. I should have just enough residual awareness to not abandon you."

"But hold on," Martha stopped him "If you're going to rewrite every single cell… Isn't it going to hurt?"

The Doctor bit his lip "Oh, yeah. It hurts." He pressed a lingering kiss to Tyra's lips before fastening the headset. Tyra turned away as he started screaming, a grimace on her face. She hated to see him in pain, especially pain that seemed excruciating.

* * *

The Tardis had landed in a time where Tyra had still been in America for which she was grateful. She had chosen a small private school in a small village. The perfect hiding place.

Surprisingly, it had only taken a tiny little bit of compulsion for the Headmaster to agree to let Tyra join his teaching staff as the German teacher. The compulsion had only been necessary because… Well, she was a woman and he hadn't been too keen on having a woman teach in an all-boys school. But since she was fluent in German and he was short a teacher. He had left a few weeks before the Tardis landed, causing the Headmaster to be a teacher short.

"That would be all then, Miss…" He looked over the paperwork "Mikaelson. A maid will show you to your quarters and I expect you to be there at the teacher's meeting tomorrow morning. I will also hand you your schedule then. Yourself and another new teacher will be introduced to the rest of the staff in this meeting and it will be explained how to handle the students and more about your responsibilities."

Tyra inclined her head, playing up her proper upbringing "Yes, sir. I am thankful for this opportunity."

"I expect you to act as a teacher first," the man warned.

"What is that supposed to mean?" she asked, her eyes narrowing on him.

He gestured to her "Well, obviously this is an all-boys school…"

Tyra cut him off "I do not like what you're implying, sir. I am nothing if not professional when it comes to my students."

"Right, right," he murmured, looking a little flustered.

Tyra internally rolled her eyes at the blatant sexism he showed but simply waved her hand at the door "If that was all, sir? I have unpacking and some organizing to do."

The Headmaster nodded "Of course, Miss Mikaelson. A maid is waiting outside to take you."

"Thank you," Tyra nodded, making her way out of the room. A small smile flitted over her face when she saw that the maid in question was none other than Martha. Technically, Martha was known as John Smith's maid who came with him to the school but she seemed to have taken over several other duties in the week she had already been here. The two of them decided that it would be too suspicious to have the Doctor – or John as he was called now – arrive at the same time as Tyra, so she offered to wait for another week before joining the two.

"And?" Martha asked curiously.

Tyra grinned "Well, I have the job. Which you know. I really shouldn't be surprised at how sexist that guy is being." She ran a hand through her hair and sighed "Modern times make it easy to forget that there's still a lot of that going around."

"Did you have to deal with sexism a lot when you were… You know?" Martha questioned.

Tyra shook my head "My status made me…" Here she couldn't help from sounding mocking "A valuable member of the society. Even though I was female."

Martha hummed "I do believe I'd rather be back with Will than here." She looked down at her hands, leading her through the corridors "The way these boys treat the maids here is… I have never seen such prejudice before. To think that they will have to fight…"

"Not here," Tyra cut her off "I guess I'll see how I'm treated as a teacher… Not that I will take anything from them. Not like…" She groaned, shaking my head.

"Like what?" Martha stopped at a door that had Tyra's name on a plaque that read 'German teacher' underneath, opening it for her.

Tyra walked in, closing the door behind Martha "Rose," she mumbled "I told you some of it but not nearly everything. I was more than patient with her and I really, really don't think I have any patience left. At least not for people who treat me like absolute crap. If those boys think they're better than me then I will set them straight."

"That's a good thing, though, isn't it?" Martha tilted her head "I mean, they should learn to respect people even if they're women. I just have one question… How do you plan on doing that?"

A mischievous smile crawled onto her lips "Oh, I have something planned."

"Ty," Martha whined, falling down on the sofa ungracefully "Tell me."

"Well, I never liked throwing around my title much but then again… I did know the queen. And the current King is a close friend – Or rather… He was when he was a child." She hummed thoughtfully "I really should go and visit him someday. Queen Victoria told me that he would like to see me again."

Martha looked up "When did you see her? It sounds like you saw her recently."

"Oh, I did. The Doctor messed up," Tyra snorted, causing Martha to roll her eyes "He wanted to take Rose and me to an Ian Drury concert in 1979 and we ended up a century earlier in Scotland. Let's just say that the Queen found out that there are aliens after that."

"Oh God," Martha laughed "What did he do?"

Tyra rubbed her forehead "You don't want to know," she told her "Or… actually, maybe you do. He got banished. Victoria banished Rose and him. All in the space of half an hour."

"That has to be a new record," Martha remarked before standing up with a small sigh "Anyway, I have to get back to work before I get into trouble. Have fun unpacking."

"Unpacking is the lesser of two evils," Tyra grumbled "I have to think about a way to teach those kids German."

Martha paused at the door "Why not do it in stories?" she offered "I mean, you have so many good stories to offer and maybe that would motivate them to learn."

"Maybe," she hummed thoughtfully. That actually sounded like a good idea. Tyra could somehow work those stories into the material and make them harder, depending on the boys' levels… "I'll think about it. Thanks, Martha. I'll see you around."

* * *

The morning of Tyra's first class, she woke up relatively early. Even if she didn't care too much about the whole teaching thing, she knew that she would have to work it for at least three months, so she spent the entire weekend and the week prior that she had off on her lesson plan. The Headmaster had given both the Doctor and Tyra a rough outline of what the previous teachers had taught and what he wanted them to go through. Since German was a third language for the kids after English and Latin, it wasn't too hard. Mostly just easy Grammar and vocabulary for the lower years and reading or storytelling for the upper years.

One of the other teachers had told Tyra that there were already rumours going around about the new – good-looking – female teacher. Tyra couldn't help but groan at that. She had enough problems with the Headmaster already – or she would have had problems, hadn't she compelled him again – without adding the fact that the boys thought that she looked good. Well, she'd just have to see what happened during class.

When the bell rang, signalling the first lesson of that Monday morning, Tyra walked into the classroom where the boys were already waiting for her "Good morning," Tyra nodded to them, putting a few pieces of paper onto the table. They weren't too important, only holding a few notes along with the lists of names for her classes of that day.

"Good morning, Miss," the boys chorused.

Tyra let her eyes wander over the group curiously, taking in the different faces "Well, since this is your first class with me, I'm going to tell you a little about me first. Then, I would like you to say your names and what you like about the German language." When none of them looked too excited, she grinned a little "I understand that you might not be too… enthusiastic about learning yet another language but maybe I can make it a little more fun for you. My name is Tyra Mikaelson. I'm twenty and have been learning German for – way too long now that I think about it."

The boys told her what she wanted to know one after the other with her marking down the names, trying to remember the faces belonging to the names. None of them seemed too happy with this class in general or impressed with her but then again. It was only the first class, so she still had time.

"Thank you," Tyra murmured when they were all done "Alright, now… About me being your teacher for the remainder of the year. It might be a little different from what you're used to but I know that learning a language isn't done by hearing lecture after lecture about grammar. From what I heard from the Headmaster your class already has a relatively good base, so we're going to try something a little… harder. I thought about several stories. You're going to have to decide which details are correct and which are lies. For that, you'll have to translate what I'm telling you. Now, for the beginning, I'm still going to be mixing German and English but the further we go into the school year, the harder it will get. Understood?" One of the boys in the back raised his hand "Thomas?"

"How many languages do you know?"

Tyra tilted her head thoughtfully "I – Actually don't know. I can speak quite a few and I tried out different ways of learning them. But if I had to wager a guess… Maybe around 20. Anyone else?" When no one else raised their hands, Tyra clapped her hands, jumping onto her desk in a fluent move "Now, then. Let's start. I have a short little story for you today. Nothing too bad and I will translate as I go along but this is a one-time thing."

She shuffled through the papers, glancing down at her notes for the shortest of moments "Okay, so… Ich weiß nicht, ob ihr mir glauben werdet. I'm unsure whether or not you're going to believe me but I was actually quite close to the late Queen Victora. Aber ich war sehr eng mit Königin Victoria befreundet." With that she talked a little more about the woman and her husband, answering the boys' questions when they asked them – some actually attempted to ask them in German.

All in all, it turned out to be a pretty good first class. Now all Tyra hoped for was that they would keep trying.

* * *

About a month and a half into their stay in 1913, everything seemed alright. The boys were still making an effort in my class. From what Tyra has seen, their grades had improved to an extent from where they had been with the former teacher, so she considered it a win. After Elijah's boring teaching methods, she had developed a method that would not only sneakily teach someone something but also to make it seem like less somehow.

In the time she had been here, she mostly stayed out of the Doctor's – or rather John Smith's – way. She wasn't sure whether she could face the man who wouldn't be able to remember her. Not in the way she would like it, though. They were together by now and seeing a man who looked like the Doctor but wasn't him… How Martha managed, she didn't know. Tyra always made time to speak to Martha whenever she saw her around, so she at least had someone to talk to about her frustrations.

Tyra walked through the corridors on her way back to her classroom. Most of the students and teachers were in class, while she had a free period. Normally, she spent said free period in my room or the library but she had been feeling restless for a little while, so Tyra had decided to walk around. When a familiar voice reached her ears, she froze. Tyra had completely forgotten that John Smith's classroom was on the way back to her classroom. Usually, the door was closed but today, it was standing open, leaving her with the view of the man the Doctor had been.

Tyra arrived just at the tail end of a lecture, deciding to lean against the opposite wall and out of view from the people in the room for now. John cleared his throat, putting down the book he was holding "If you have listened to the lecture like I hope you did, you'll be able to answer this question. When did Queen Mary of Scotland die and how?" Silence followed his question as several of the boys shuffled in their seats. The lesson was almost done and they probably couldn't wait to escape the boring History classroom "Well? No one?"

"February 8th, 1587," Tyra spoke up, leaning against the doorway. The Human Doctor's head snapped to the side, looking at Tyra with surprise. Not that she could blame him. They had barely interacted since starting to teach "She was beheaded for treason by Queen Elizabeth I."

"Correct." The bell rang, causing the boys to gather their things quickly, not giving John a chance to give them any homework. A few of them shot Tyra small smiles as they made their way past her. When the last one was gone, Tyra turned to make her way back to her classroom when she heard John's steps following her quickly "Miss Mikaelson?"

She stopped, turning to look at the man with her head tilted to the side "Yes?"

"How did you know?" John asked, his voice making his confusion obvious "The answer, I mean. I didn't think…"

"That I'd be interested in History?" Tyra finished for him "I am. Not only because of my… my ancestor's journals. History is something that is very… important to me and my family." She looked over her shoulder and down the corridor "If you would excuse me, now? I have a class to teach."

John took a step back, nodding his head "Yes, yes. Of course." Before he turned around, he hesitated "Would you – No, I apologize."

"Would I what?" Tyra questioned.

"Would you like to talk sometime?" John swallowed "I mean, there are a few… I would love to hear… I would like to see those journals you mentioned. Do you have them with you?"

Tyra let out a small laugh at his stuttering "I would like that, Mr Smith. And yes, I do have several with me. I don't go anywhere without them much. Apologies, but I really have to go now."

"Of course."

* * *

Tyra bit her lip, glancing down at the journals she had grabbed from the Tardis earlier today. Ever since a few months ago, shortly after Rose had been trapped in the parallel universe, she had started storing her journals and some of her brothers' in her room. The Doctor had wanted to see them and since the Tardis was one of the safest places, Tyra just grabbed them all.

"Come in," John called in response to Tyra's quiet knock "Ah, Miss Mikaelson." He smiled nervously, shuffling a bit closer to Tyra when she entered the room. When he just stopped a little in front of her, Tyra shifted a little hesitantly. Now that she was here, she had no idea what to do or say. John seemed to realize that he should probably say something else and gestured to the couches "Please."

Tyra sat down, placing the two journals next to her. One was hers and the other was Elijah's. She only grabbed both of them, since he started earlier and accounted for a few things that Tyra only found out through Finn.

"Are these the journals?" he questioned, peaking at them with thinly veiled curiosity.

"Yes," Tyra nodded, caressing the spine of her own gently "They were written by two of my ancestors and passed down in the family. This one specifically…" She picked up the one with the blue cover "Was written by the woman I was named after, while the other is from her older brother."

John hummed "And they lived… when and where? I seem to have forgotten."

"America," Tyra replied, internally laughing at his sheepish expression. It was so like the Doctor and one of the things she loved about him. There were many things and she wasn't sure whether she liked the fact that John did have traits of the Doctor. Tyra wasn't sure whether he would remember or what happened to John Smith once he opened the watch. Speaking of watch… She looked around conspicuously until she spotted a flash of gold on the mantelpiece "In the 10th century. Their family travelled to the New World from what is Norway today while my ancestor's mother was pregnant with the person who wrote this journal." The black one.

"So…" he trailed off in confusion "I always thought that the Native Americans were the… Well, natives in America."

Tyra shook her head "Many people do. Because they ignore the evidence. The Vikings were the first people to travel from the Old World to the New." She held out the journal "You're welcome to read them… As long as you're careful. These are really old. One of my other ancestors rewrote them when they started falling apart but I don't really wish to do the same thing, you know?"

"Of course, of course," John nodded eagerly "Oh, there's something I wanted to show you. I – I have been journaling myself a little…" He carefully placed the two journal Tyra had given him onto his bedside table and grabbed another, handing it over "It's more of a – a dream journal, I guess you could say."

Tyra dropped her eyes to the small book and flipped it open. What she saw written there, almost made her drop the thing. The Doctor – John Smith had written about some of their adventures, sketching Daleks, Cybermen and other species they had encountered. Tyra stopped at the page that held the Doctor's past regenerations, trailing her finger over the sketches "Who are they?" she asked, hoping that her voice didn't sound as strained as she felt.

John sat down next to her, pointing them out, explaining what he had written and how he had dreamed of being this adventurer and how Tyra herself appeared in his dreams as well "Here. This character – Rose, her name is – she disappears over time but you – I mean, Tyra here, is a constant. She has been there as long as Rose has and longer."

"Curious," she murmured "And you dream of travelling through space and time?" A picture of the Tardis, made her tap it "In this?"

"Exactly," he nodded "It's nothing but imagination but… I think you might be interested. I heard about your teaching methods." John sent her an amused smile "Makes the rest of us teachers look bad."

Tyra let out a laugh "Well, I apologize for that. The method has proven itself and the boys seem to pick everything up amazingly well."

"They have a good teacher, then," John complimented with a grin. Was it him or did he become more confident in this last hour he had been with Tyra in this room? Before, John had been… a bit curious, constantly lost in thoughts but now he was acting more confident.

Tyra groaned in embarrassment when he nudged her lightly and buried her face in her hands "Stop, please."

* * *

Tyra was leaning against the wall opposite of where Martha and one of her fellow maids – Jenny were scrubbing the floor. Martha looked up "So…"

"So?" Tyra repeated, a teasing smile on her face. Martha had been hounding her for a while about an incident in her past. In the past while, they had been talking more and more about family even if Tyra had been reluctant at first. Martha was missing her family, so the least she could do was to trust her with some information about her own past. After all, she had met Kol and not run for the hills. That had to count for something, right?

"Oh, come on," Martha huffed, causing Jenny to look over at her with wide eyes. It had always been a bit of a wonder for the other maids when they witnessed their less than formal interactions. Tyra didn't mind, though. The day she acted the way she was expected to – when it came to her station – towards one of the people Tyra considered friends was the day she would voluntarily wake up Mikael. That would never happen. Ever "You promised."

Tyra smirked "Did I?"

"Ty," Martha groaned quietly. Before she could say anything else, John walked along the tiled corridor past the three of them, his head once again stuck in the clouds. It had been fascinating to see just how different John was from the Doctor. It was almost like there was nothing of the Doctor in John Smith but that was a lie. Even if he was human, John still reminded both Martha and Tyra of the Time Lord "Morning, sir," Martha greeted, startling John.

"Yes, hi," John mumbled, walking up the stairs. His eyes drifted towards Tyra and when he saw her amused expression, he missed one of the steps. John tripped, almost falling onto his face. The flush caused Tyra to stifle her laughter as he hurried off.

She shook her head, turning back to Martha "I'll never get used to that."

"Head in the clouds, that one," Jenny sighed, turning back to scrubbing the floor "He seems different around you, Miss Mikaelson."

"I told you to call me Tyra, Jenny," Tyra pointed out.

Jenny shook her head "It's not proper."

Tyra rolled her eyes "Propriety is overrated." She ran a hand through her hair "Anyway, I have papers to grade, so… I'll see you later, Martha."

"Sure," Martha nodded "I'll be up when I'm done."

Tyra nodded her head, making her way up the stairs. She froze, though, when she heard that two of her more… troubled students came down the hall, talking loudly. Martha and Jenny were joking around when the two boys came into view. Baines stopped, eyeing them in disdain "Er, now then, you two. You're not paid to have fun, are you? Put a little backbone into it."

"Yes, sir," Jenny breathed "Sorry, sir."

"You there," Hutchinson spoke up, smirking at Martha "What's your name again?"

Tyra watched as Martha looked up, a hint of defiance in her eyes "Martha, sir. Martha Jones."

"Tell me then, Jones. With hands like those, how can you tell when something's clean?" the boy laughed.

"Hutchinson," Tyra called sharply, causing the two boys to freeze "Baines. Detention with me tomorrow."

The boys looked at each other before looking to the ground "Yes, Miss."

"Don't you have anything else to say?" she asked, crossing her arms. If there was one thing Tyra didn't stand for, it was prejudice. The boys knew it, everyone knew it. She hadn't made a secret out of handing out detention for treating the maids badly. It might have been common practice in this time but those boys would head to war. If they couldn't respect women for what they were, then there was no hope. Especially, boys as entitled as those two.

"Apologies," Hutchinson mumbled, glancing at Martha.

Tyra rolled her eyes at him when he made it seem like the hardest thing he ever did and continued on her way up "Don't let me catch you again."

Just before she disappeared around a corner, she heard Jenny's voice "I do rather like her," she laughed quietly.

* * *

"Ty," Martha called out from down the hall "Ty, you have to come quickly."

Tyra turned around, practically catching Martha who barrelled into her "Martha, calm down. What happened?"

"The Doctor," Martha panted "Some of the boys just told me."

"Martha, what happened?" she sighed, trying to get the girl to get to the point "And shouldn't you be used to calling him John Smith by now? I mean… You never know who is listening."

"He fell down the stairs," Martha said.

Tyra's grip on Martha's arm tightened "How in the world did he manage that?"

"Never mind that," she snapped lightly, tugging at her arm "Come on."

Tyra followed her, getting loose a little before John's room. And a good thing too, because Martha decided to do a modern entrance and just burst in "Is he alright?" she asked as Tyra leaned against the open doorway, seeing the school's nurse tending to John's injuries. There was barely any blood, so bruises were most likely the worst the man got.

"Excuse me, Martha," Joan huffed, not having noticed Tyra in the doorway "It's hardly good form to enter a master's study without knocking."

Martha nodded, hiding her annoyance "Sorry. Right. Yeah." She whirled around, going back to the door. Tyra let out an amused snort, stepping into the room as Martha closed the door for a moment, knocked and then re-entered "But is he alright? They said you fell down the stairs, sir."

"No, it was just a tumble, that's all," he waved off before catching Tyra's eye "Ms Tyra." Tyra rolled her eyes at the formal-ish greeting. Really, they had been talking more and more these past few weeks and she had told him that he should just call her Tyra. So far 'Ms Tyra' was the closest he had gotten. Tyra didn't mind too much, though. It was sort of cute how he acted around her.

"John," she greeted "How about that head then?"

"My head is fine," he sighed and hissed when Matron Redfern pressed a piece of gauze to the small wound.

Tyra raised her eyebrow "Yeah? I can see that."

"Have you checked for a concussion?" Martha asked, watching the nurse attentively.

Joan shot a glare at Martha "I have," she said "And I daresay I know a lot more about it than you."

"Martha," Tyra called out warningly, placing her hand on her arm when it looked like she wanted to say something less than flattering.

"Sorry," she exhaled loudly "I'll – I'll just tidy your things."

Tyra looked at the other three people in the room before taking a few small steps back "I'll just be going then."

"Wait," John called out "I was – I was just telling Nurse Redfern – Matron – about my dreams. I have added quite a few more since you've last seen my journal. They are quite remarkable tales, aren't they?"

Tyra sighed internally and made her way towards the chair John was sitting in and gestured to the sofa "Do you mind?"

"No, no, be my guest," he nodded before going back to what he was saying before "I keep imagining that I'm someone else and that I'm hiding."

"Hiding?" Joan repeated "In what way?"

John leaned back with a sigh "They're almost every night. This is going to sound silly."

"I think I heard worse before," Tyra told him, exchanging a mischievous grin with Martha who rolled her eyes at her.

"I dream," John murmured "Quite often, that I have two hearts."

Oh, Tyra could only wish. Despite her having said yes to the Doctor, they barely had any time together before the Family came. They were still new and Tyra wasn't sure whether this would make it worse or better. Against her own advice, she was finding herself falling more and more for the man John Smith was and could be. A part of her felt as if she was betraying the Doctor… She barely knew what the Chameleon Circuit was doing and so she wasn't sure what of the Doctor remained and what was purely John.

"Well, then," Joan shrugged "I can be the judge of that. Let's find out." She grabbed her stethoscope and used it to listen to the human Doctor's chest "I can confirm the diagnosis. Just one heart, singular."

John licked his lips as if debating on whether to admit about the next part to a new person "I have – er – I have written down some of these dreams in the form of fiction. Not that it would be of any interest." Before anyone could tell him differently, he continued "Oh, I also wanted to give you these back." He handed Tyra her journals with a thankful smile "They were very interesting indeed. Although, I wish they could have had a better life. I just have one question, though."

"Go on," Tyra nodded, putting the journals to the side.

"Both of the journals cut off at roughly the same time. What happened after – after the boy, Henrik died?" John asked.

Tyra stiffened. Really, she should have thought of that. Both Elijah and she had stopped documenting things that happened in their first years as vampires. Not only because Tyra had gotten daggered but because of the struggle it had been to get used to everything "Nothing is documented for a few years after that," she told him, clenching her hand in the fabric of her pants "The journals pick back up in the 13th century."

"Who is Henrik?" Joan asked "What are those journals?"

Tyra shot her an exasperated look "Family heirlooms," Tyra muttered, picking them back up "Now if you'll excuse me? I have some papers to grade which I should have done already."

"Ty," Martha called before she was out the door, ignoring the admonishing looks from the other two "Are we still on for later?"

"Sure," Tyra nodded, smiling lightly "Just come and get me when you're ready to leave."

* * *

That same evening, Tyra was standing outside the village pub with Jenny, waiting for Martha to return with their drinks. She wasn't feeling much like alcohol today, so she just went along with the two, keeping them company.

"Oh, it's freezing out here," Martha groaned, handing over one of the pints to Jenny "Why can't we have a drink inside the pub?"

Jenny let out an incredulous laugh "Now, don't be ridiculous. You do get these notions." She shook her head "Both of you do. It's all very well, those Suffragettes. But that's London. That's miles away."

"But don't you just want to scream sometimes, having to bow and scrape and behave. Don't you just want to tell them?" Martha asked.

Jenny rolled her eyes "I don't know. Things must be different in your country."

"Yeah, well they are," Martha proclaimed "Thank God, I'm not staying."

"You keep saying that," Jenny murmured.

Martha put down her drink "Just you wait," she said "One more month and I'm as free as the wind. I wish you could come with us, Jenny. You'd love it."

Jenny tilted her head "Where are you going to go? And who is 'we'?"

"Me," Tyra cut in "Martha and I are thinking about leaving in a little while."

"Leave? Leave where?" Jenny repeated.

"Anywhere," Martha sighed dreamily, looking up at the night sky "Just look up there. Imagine you could go all the way out to the stars."

Jenny let out an undignified snort, almost spilling her beer "You don't half say mad things."

"That's where I'm going," Martha grumbled "Into the sky, all the way out."

Tyra grabbed her arm and leaned over "I know that you like her but… Don't you think you're telling her too much?" she hissed quietly as Jenny was distracted by a group of people walking past them.

A green flash lit up the sky for the shortest of moments, causing Martha to gasp "Did you see that?"

"See what?" Jenny frowned.

Tyra just nodded, looking at the sky in trepidation. That hadn't been a normal light. Not even a normal meteorite. They usually weren't green as far as she was aware.

Martha pointed upwards "Did you see it, though? Right up there, just for a second."

"Martha, there's nothing there," Jenny soothed.

Tyra shook her head "I saw it too." She looked over her shoulder when she heard heavy footsteps running in their direction.

"Matron," Martha asked, seeing the panicked look on the other woman's face "Are you alright?"

Joan shook her head, taking deep breaths "Did you see that? There was something in the woods. This light."

Before Martha or Tyra could even open our mouths, John popped up almost out of nowhere "Anything wrong, ladies? Far too cold to be standing around in the dark, don't you…"

"There," Joan called out "There. Look in the sky."

The same light as before crossed the sky and Jenny let out an amazed sigh "Oh, that's beautiful."

"All gone," John stated a moment later "Commonly known as a meteorite. It's just rocks falling to the ground, that's all."

"I don't think the rocks are green," Tyra muttered to Martha who was still looking up.

Joan craned her neck as if to see whether the thing landed somewhere "It came down in the woods."

"No, no, no," John shook his head, slipping into his teacher voice. Tyra had heard that surprisingly often in the past weeks. Whenever it came to a subject the man was passionate about "No, they always look close when actually they're miles off. Nothing left but a cinder." He clapped his gloved hands, his eyes lingering on Tyra for a moment "Now, I should escort you back to the school. Ladies?"

"No, we're fine." Tyra glanced at Martha.

Martha nudged her "Go with him," she breathed quietly "I'll go and check the woods, alright?"

"Fine," Tyra sighed and turned towards John "If you don't mind me tagging along."

Joan looked a little disappointed but John's expression lit up "Not at all." He held out his arm for Tyra, nodding to the two maids "Then I shall bid you goodnight."

* * *

Tyra looked up at the knock to her classroom door "Hey," she smiled, nodding to Martha "What are you doing here?"

"I was going to go to the Tardis for a bit. Do you wanna join?" she questioned.

Tyra was about to agree when she stopped and grimaced "I would love to but…" She gestured to her overflowing desk "Who knew that being a teacher is such hard work."

Martha let out a laugh and patted her shoulder "Want me to bring you back some blood?"

"Would you?" Tyra asked "I haven't been able to go out as often as I wanted."

"Sure," Martha shrugged "Not like I have a blood phobia or something… That would be sort of unfortunate."

Tyra smirked "What? A future doctor with a phobia of blood? I would love to see that."

"Honestly? So would I," Martha admitted "Anyway, I'm going to go now. I'll put them in your room once I get back, alright? Usual place?"

"Yup," Tyra nodded and glanced past her at Timothy. She had asked to speak to him at the end of his classes "Now scram. I have a date." Here she winked at Timothy with a small grin, causing the boy to tilt his head in surprise.

Martha blinked and looked around, snorting at Tyra's comment "Hello, Tim."

"Hi," Timothy smiled. He was well known around the staff as one of the few really well-mannered children. He was always happy to help but his schoolwork was noticeably paced, as if he purposely got lower grades.

"I'll leave you to it, then. Bye," Martha waved, making her way past Timothy and out of the room.

Tyra shuffled around some papers and smiled up at Timothy "You can come closer," she grinned "I don't bite. Much."

"You told me to come and talk to you, Miss?"

"I did," Tyra nodded "There's one thing I wanted to ask you." With that, she picked up three different notebooks, placing them open on her desk "This seems to be written by the same person, even if they tried to disguise their handwriting. What I find fascinating is that they all seem to be your roommates' homework."

"I –"

Tyra cut him off "I'm not asking you to stop if that's what you think. I'm asking if they hurt you more than the beatings the other teachers are allowing."

"N – No," Tim shook his head "They only… suggest it. Strongly."

"Alright," Tyra sighed in relief "I won't mark them lower but I will talk to them if it continues. How do they want to make something of their lives if they don't even learn on their own?" She shook her head in disgust "You know where to find me if they ever go too far. I'm not just your teacher, you know. I won't tell anyone about what you're going to tell me."

Timothy sent Tyra a small, thankful smile "Thanks, Miss. I – I really appreciate it." He glanced at the clock "I have to go. Mr Smith wanted me to pick up a book from him."

"Aren't you popular today?" Tyra teased.

"Aren't I just," Timothy joked back, relaxing with a content smile. Tyra had been an amazing teacher for them, motivating students without trying too much. Some of the boys at school had been slightly scared that she would use her position as the only woman teacher to her advantage but Tyra had been nothing but nice to them – unless they pissed her off. Most of the boys learned quickly, not to treat the staff badly when she was around.

* * *

John and Tyra were in his study, each of them reading peacefully. Tyra had gotten him another journal. This one of her journey back to England with her brothers just before they met Katerina Petrova. Tyra wasn't sure whether she would be mentioned in that specific journal since she honestly couldn't remember the actual year she met her.

"You really do have a hand for art," Tyra spoke up, trailing her hand over one of the sketches that held the Cyber-controller from Pete's World. It was amazingly detailed.

John glanced over "This is nothing. Just a simple sketch."

"Better than everything I could do with pen and paper," Tyra laughed.

"Would you… Would you like me to draw you?" John asked, fidgeting nervously "You would make the perfect addition to my journal."

Tyra raised her eyebrow "I sincerely doubt that but if you feel the need to sketch me, go right ahead."

So… He did. Tyra had grabbed herself another book and settled down to read, while John started sketching. She wasn't entirely sure how much time had passed before he let out a satisfied breath. Tyra looked over curiously, slightly disappointed when she couldn't see the page from her angle "May I see?"

John got up, sitting down next to her, handing the journal over "You are by far the quietest subject I have ever drawn," he pointed out "I don't believe you have moved in over an hour."

Tyra blinked "It's been an hour? Huh…" Tyra looked down at the page and smiled "This is beautiful. You really are talented."

"It helps when the person in my drawing is beautiful, to begin with."

"You can be a charmer, can't you?" Tyra asked rhetorically.

John hummed, his eyes trailing to her lips "I want to…" he trailed off, leaning forward to brush their lips together in a kiss. Tyra froze in surprise, still remembering the feeling of the Doctor's lips. John – while technically the same person – was very different. His kisses were softer in a way. The Doctor being his usual, enthusiastic self, while John's showed hesitance "I've never – er…" Tyra shook my head, pressing their lips together again when the door burst open. John jerked away from Tyra and she cursed herself internally. Why did she do that? What if the Doctor remembered what John Smith? What if he didn't? Was this cheating? "Martha, what have I told you about entering unannounced?"

Martha looked from John to Tyra with wide eyes "I – er… I was looking for Tyra, actually." She looked at her.

"Well," Tyra cleared her throat, getting up "You found me. What's wrong?" A glance at the clock revealed the reason why she interrupted "Crap. I have to go."

"Yeah, that's what I was trying to tell you," Martha nodded, then lowered her voice. Tyra was sure that over the past two months, they had mastered the art of talking to each other without people noticing, even when standing directly next to them "We're so going to have to talk about this later, do you understand?"

Before Tyra could hurry out of the room, John stopped her "Miss Tyra… Would you do me the honour of coming to the ball with me tomorrow?"

Tyra stopped, looking at Martha with thinly veiled panic "What do I do?" she mouthed.

"Just go along," she gestured back.

"I would love to," Tyra replied to him "Even if I'm not much of a ball person."

* * *

The next evening, Tyra was dressed in a dress for the first time since entering 1913. It wasn't nearly as proper as it was supposed to be but she didn't care. She wore what she liked and what – to some extent would be able to fit in.

Tyra bit my lips, raising her hand to knock on the door to John's study. John opened it in a split second. He opened his mouth, closed it again before repeating the process "You look wonderful."

"Thank you," Tyra smiled "I – I just thought I'd let you know but… I don't think I will dance today. You might be able to convince me but I don't really like dancing."

"That is alright," John told her, stepping to the side to let her in "I'm not certain I can dance regardless."

Tyra let out an amused laugh "One less thing for you to worry about, then."

"Yes. Yes." John reached out to caress her cheeks before leaning close again. She knew that she should be stopping it, she knew that she wouldn't be able to explain in case the Doctor wanted to know why she had been doing what she did.

"They've found us," Martha panted, bursting into the room again.

Tyra turned her head to look at her "You have a really bad timing."

"Martha," John groaned "I've warned you."

"They've found us," Martha repeated urgently, silently pleading with Tyra "And I've seen them. They look like people, like us, like normal. I'm sorry but you've got to open the watch." She hurried over to the mantlepiece "Where is it?" Martha's motions got more frantic "Oh, my God. Where's it gone? Where's the watch?"

John frowned as Tyra stalked to Martha's side "What are you talking about?"

"You had a watch," Martha explained impatiently "A fob watch. Right there."

"Did I?" John tilted his head "I don't remember."

"But we need it," Martha exclaimed, whirling to face Tyra "Please tell me that you know where it is. You spent a lot of time in here. Didn't you notice that it was missing?" When Tyra just looked at her blankly, she groaned "Oh, my God, Doctor, we're hiding from aliens and they've got Jenny and they've possessed her or copied her or something and you've got to tell me, where's the watch?"

A look of realisation crossed John's face "Oh, I see," he nodded "It must be so confusing for you. Martha, this is what we call a story."

Tyra stifled her laughter as the medical student raised her hand to her forehead "Or you complete… This is not you. This is nineteen thirteen."

"Good," John soothed "This is nineteen thirteen."

"Oh, this is better than any soap opera the Tardis has on offer," Tyra mumbled to herself, watching their exchange like a tennis match.

Martha bit her lip "I'm sorry. I'm really sorry but I've got to snap you out of this." She slapped the not-quite-Doctor hard "Wake up. You're coming back to the Tardis with me."

"How dare you," John gasped "How dare you. I'm not going anywhere with an insane servant. Martha, you are dismissed. You will leave these premises immediately. Now, get out."

"Ty, do something," Martha suddenly turned back to her "You have to tell him."

Tyra ran a hand through her hair, musing it up "Actually, John," she started "Martha is telling the truth. You did have a watch and everything she said was true. The journal… Everything has happened, John."

John shook his head "You're both insane," he grumbled, storming past them and out of the door.

Martha and Tyra exchanged looks and Tyra sighed "You look for the watch, I'll follow him?"

"Done," Martha nodded, racing off towards… wherever it was she was going to search.

* * *

John's scent had lead her to the Village dance and Tyra relaxed a little. There were a lot of people in there, not too much of a chance for an attack… Then again. Who knew with the Family? They wanted a Time Lord, so they probably wouldn't stop at one village.

As soon as she entered the hall, Tyra's gaze rested on John who was stiffly dancing with Joan. When had those two found each other? A feeling bubbled up inside of her but she pushed it back violently. There was no time for jealousy. She had to get John alone somehow but… He looked happy, relaxed. Maybe she could give him a little longer. As long as the Family wasn't here yet and the watch was missing, she should leave them be.

"What are you doing?" Martha questioned a little while later, coming to a stop next to her "I thought you would talk to him, explain the situation."

Tyra gestured to Joan "I didn't want to interrupt. Honestly, he looked happy and I wanted him to have that moment."

"With Matron Redfern?"

"What can you do? He's not the Doctor. He deserves someone who would be better for him than me," Tyra shrugged "Did you find it?"

Martha shook her head "No. It's nowhere. What if the Family already has it?"

"Then they wouldn't be here," Tyra pointed out "No, someone else must have taken it. But why? And who?"

"Come on," Martha sighed "We have to try and talk to him again."

John had just returned to Joan, carrying two drinks in his hands. When he caught sight of the two girls, he sighed "Oh, now really? This is getting out of hand. I must insist that you leave." He hesitated for a moment "Both of you."

Martha held up the Doctor's sonic, waving it in John's face "Do you know what this is? Name it," she challenged "Go on, name it."

Tyra snatched it from her hand, slipping it into her bra "Martha," she warned, looking around nervously. She wasn't sure whether the Family were here. Someone could be listening to their conversation and that would be the end of hiding.

"John, what is that silly thing?" Joan asked, wrinkling her nose "John?"

"You're not John Smith," Martha told them man "You're called the Doctor. The man in your journal… Like Tyra said, he's real. He's you." Tyra closed her eyes for a moment before looking around the room. She was about to turn back to the conversation when a little girl caught her eye. She was holding a red balloon and had a satisfied smile on her face. Well, damn.

All of a sudden, a voice barked over the sound of music "There will be silence," a man shouted "All of you." People started to huddle together and several screamed when animated scarecrows entered, blocking all exits "I said, silence."

The man who owned the hall, stepped forwards "Mr Clarke, what's going on?" he questioned carefully. Without a second of hesitation, he was vaporised.

"Mr Smith?" Martha started urgently "Everything I told you, just forget it. Don't say anything."

"It's too late for that," Tyra muttered, her eyes on the little girl.

Bains gritted his teeth as the screams continued "We asked for silence. Now then, we have a few questions for Mr Smith."

"No, better than that," the little girl grinned, skipping up to the two men at the front of the room "The teacher. He's the Doctor. I heard them talking."

Baines looked at John with a tilted head, inhaling "You took human form," he taunted, slightly surprised by the events.

"Of course, I'm human," John blinked "I was born human, as were you, Baines. And Jenny and you, Mr Clarke. What's going on? This is madness."

"Ooh," the boy continued with a smirk "And a human brain too. Simple, thick and dull."

Jenny let out a noise of distress "But he's no good like this."

"We need a Time Lord," Clarke agreed.

"Easily done," Baines shrugged, raising his ray gun to the human Doctor's head "Change back."

John looked at him in confusion and fear "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Change back."

"I literally do not know…"

Jenny shot forward, grabbing a hold of Tyra, while Clarke grabbed Martha. Tyra went with her easily. No sense, showing everyone what she was just yet. She didn't feel like compelling everyone later "She's your lover, isn't she? Doesn't this scare you enough to change back?"

John shook his head desperately "I don't know what you mean."

"Have you enjoyed it, Doctor, being human?" Baines questioned, stepping closer to Tyra and Jenny "Has it taught you wonderful things? Are you better, richer, wiser? Then let's see you answer this. Which one of them do you want us to kill? Maid or teacher? Your friend or your lover? Your choice."

**Hey, guys. So, since I know that Yahoo Groups has shut down/will shut down. Plus, all of the documents I uploaded are gone, I decided to make a Discord together with Maethoriel Artemis and two other writers. If you're interested in joining, I would like that. **

**We have channels for most of our stories where you can discuss the Fic in questions. For me, there are also channels that hold pdf documents of some of my deleted stories and the finished ones.**

**The link will be on my profile. Please, if you're interested, check it out. **

**Nick**


	25. Family of Blood

"Make your decision, Mr Smith," Jenny said. Tyra caught Martha's gaze and got ready to get out of the Mother's grip when Martha nodded.

Baines hummed "Perhaps if that human heart breaks, the Time Lord will emerge."

Tyra moved quickly and was about to knock Jenny out when the whispering started in her mind. Her head snapped to the side along with those of the family "_Time Lord,_" a voice breathed. Tyra stepped back when she was suddenly free and glanced down in confusion. Her eyes widened a little when she saw the body on the ground. How?

"It's him," Baines hissed.

While the Family was distracted, Martha quickly wrestled the gun away from the Father's hands, holding it to his forehead "Alright," she snapped, casting a quick glance to the ground by Tyra's feet "One more move and I shoot."

"Oh, the maid is full of fire," Baines laughed.

"And you can shut up." Martha fired the gun at the ceiling, causing the remainder of the Family to back away from her.

Clark grabbed Baines' arm, barely holding back his anger at the sight of Jenny laying on the ground "Careful, Son of Mine. This is all for you so that you can live forever. Don't risk us in favour of your plan."

Baines barely deemed the other man worthy of a look before his hand shot up, pointing the gun at Martha "Shoot you down," he smirked. Tyra shifted to stand in front of Martha enough so that the shot would hit her but not enough so that she wouldn't be able to shoot him.

"Try it," Martha challenged.

"Would you really pull the trigger?" Baines asked, raising his eyebrows in amusement "Looks too scared."

Martha growled lowly "Scared and holding a gun is a good combination. Do you want to risk it?" The Family lowered their guns as one, staring at both of us in disgust "Doctor, get everyone out. There's a door at the side. It's over there." She gestured with her left hand "Go on. Do it, Mr Smith. I mean you."

"Do what she said," Joan called out "Everybody out, now. Don't argue, Mr Jackson. They're mad. That's all we need to know. Susan, Miss Cooper, outside, all of you." As if that broke the spell, the villagers started running away, screaming their heads off.

"Do they always have to scream?" Tyra complained.

Martha let out an incredulous laugh "Not all of us can be practically immortal and not feat anything, Ty."

"I'm not afraid of anything," she murmured before turning to her. Tyra grabbed the gun out of her hands and prodded her in the Doctor's – John's direction "Go. I'll be right there, alright?"

Martha hesitated for a moment "Don't kill them," she breathed, moving away "They're not worth it."

When everyone was gone, Tyra tilted her head, staring at the three remaining Family members "So, what now? Are we going to stare at each other until your painfully short lives end or are you going to do something?"

"She's almost brave, this one," Baines grinned before a thoughtful look flitted across his face "Then again, that much was obvious from the first class. There is something different about her."

"What happened to Baines?" Tyra asked, a little concerned about her student. She doubted that he was still alive but it was worth a try.

The Son sneered "Consumed. Their bodies are outs."

"Thanks," Tyra nodded "Means I don't have to feel guilty for killing a friend." She gestured to Jenny's body.

The Father snarled and was about to raise his gun when Baines interrupted by snapping at the scarecrow that had been sneaking up on Tyra "Get the gun." She let the gun go, easily, throwing them another look before she was out of there. From the looks of it, the Son wouldn't have it easy to convince the Father to continue with their goals. One of them was already dead and the others would soon follow. Whether due to their lifespan or another reason.

"Miss Tyra," John gasped, hurrying over to me "Are you alright?"

Tyra blinked at him in surprise, not having expected him to still be here "I'm fine."

"Are they still alive?" Martha asked when she joined her.

Tyra hummed "Sadly, they are. Which means that you." Here she shot a look to John who was still hovering behind her worriedly "Should be running. Not standing around playing bodyguard."

"He's rather rubbish as a human, isn't he?" Martha asked.

"I wouldn't say that," Tyra snorted "Different and yet the same." She glanced over to him, only to catch Joan's look of… Was that jealousy? Well, she did dance with John earlier and had gushed over the notebook that John had lent her but did that mean that she had feelings for him? Normally, Tyra was good at reading people but fondness and love were something different. She had never been too good with either of them when it came to people outside of her family.

They hurried back to the school and John shut the main doors behind them, grabbing the bell. Tyra flinched at the loudness of the ringing and Martha ripped his arm away "What are you doing?"

"Maybe one man can't fight then," John murmured "But this school teaches us to stand together." When the boys slowly filtered down, he shouted to them "Take arms. Take arms."

"You can't do that," Martha groaned "Tyra. Can't you…?"

"Sorry," she shrugged "But even as a teacher I don't have the authority. Women, you know? I didn't want to go overboard."

John glared at both of them lightly "You want me to fight, don't you? That's what I'm doing. Take arms. Take arms."

Hutchinson stumbled down the stairs, looking a little sleepy "I say sir, what's the matter?"

"Enemy at the door, Hutchinson," John explained "Enemy at the door. Take arms."

The guns were being passed out as Martha flitted between the boys "You can't do this, Doctor… Mr Smith."

"Redfern," John snapped "Maintain position over the stable yard. Faster now. That's it."

"They're just boys," Martha tried "You can't ask them to fight. They don't stand a chance."

Tyra leaned against the wall by them, watching the chaos unfold. She hated the fact that the boys had to go through that but sadly they didn't have a choice. Not with what was going to come next year. This was one thing Tyra hated about time travel. Going to the past, knowing what's going to happen but having no way of stopping it "Martha, let it go. You won't be able to change his mind."

"What in thunder's name is this?" the Headmaster shouted, entering to see the complete chaos that was happening around them "Before I devise an excellent and endless series of punishments for each and every one of you, could someone explain very simply and immediately exactly what is going on?"

John stepped up nervously "Headmaster, I have to report the school is under attack."

"Really?" the Headmaster snorted "Is that so? Perhaps you and I should have a word in private."

"No," John shook his head urgently "I promise you, sir. I was in the village with Miss Mikaelson. It's Baines, sir. Jeremy Baines and Mr Clark from Oakham Farm. They've gone mad, sir. They've got guns. They've already murdered people in the village. I saw it happen."

Headmaster Rocastle raised his eyebrows, his eyes finding Tyra "Miss Mikaelson, is that so?"

Before she could even open her mouth, Joan cut in "It's afraid it's true, sir."

"Murder on our own soil?"

"We all saw it. Yes."

Rocastle paled "Perhaps you did well then, Mr Smith. What makes you think the danger's coming here?"

"Well, sir, they said…"

John was cut off as well. Really, now? It was like Joan was asking to be in the centre of attention "Baines threatened Mr Smith, sir. Said he'd follow him. We don't know why."

"Very well," the Headmaster nodded before turning to the boys "You boys, remain on guard. Mr Snell, telephone for the police. Mr Philips, with me. We shall investigate."

Martha's eyes widened "No! But it's not safe out there."

Rocastle rolled his eyes "Mr Smith, it seems your favourite servant is giving me advice. You will control her, sir."

Tyra snorted at Martha's affronted look and whispered "Men." Before following the men out of the front gate.

"Miss Mikaelson," Mr Philips frowned "You should stay inside where it's safe."

"Not at all," she shook her head "I will be fine, sir. You should worry about yourself. Baines is… unhinged."

Rocastle glanced at them before stopping a few feet from where Baines was standing with some of his scarecrows gathered around him. The Father and Sister were nowhere to be seen. It put Tyra a little on edge. The Headmaster mustered the boy critically "So, Baines… Am I to gather that some practical joke has got out of hand?"

"Headmaster, sir," Baines straightened, a glint of sadistic amusement in his eyes "Good evening, sir. Come to give me a caning, sir? Would you like that, sir?"

"Keep a civil tongue, boy," the man flustered.

Mr Philips took a small step forward when it looked like the Headmaster was really to blow up "Now come on, everyone. I suspect alcohol has played its part in this." Tyra glanced back when she felt eyes on me and saw John standing in one of the windows "Let's all just calm down. And who are these friends of yours, Baines, in fancy dress?"

"Do you like them, Mr Philips?" Baines asked "I made them myself. I'm ever so good at science, sir. Look." He pulled the arm off one of the scarecrows "Molecular fringe animation fashioned in the shape of straw men. My own private army, sir. It's ever so good, sir."

Rocastle let out a sigh "Baines, step apart from this company and come inside with me."

Baines shook his head mockingly "No, sir. You, sir, you will send us Mr John Smith. That's all we want, sir, Mr John Smith, Miss Mikaelson and whatever the two have done with Smith's Time Lord consciousness. Then we'd be very happy to leave you alone."

"You speak with someone else's voice, Baines," the Headmaster murmured "Who might that be?"

"We are the Family of Blood."

Rocastle narrowed his eyes "Mr Smith said there had been deaths."

"Yes, sir," Baines smirked "And they were good, sir."

"Well, I warn you, the school is armed."

Baines looked very unimpressed with the threat and she couldn't fault him. His enemies were boys who had never killed before. They would do it and Tyra was aware of that but that didn't mean that they wouldn't be scared after this whole ordeal "All your little tin soldiers," the Son spat "But tell me, sir, will they thank you?"

"I don't understand," Rocastle blinked.

"What do you know of history, sir?" Baines asked "What do you know of next year?"

Tyra took a step forward "That's enough."

"Oh, not even close," Baines laughed hollowly before going back to ignoring her "1914, sir. Because the Family has travelled far and wide looking for Mr Smith and – oh – the things we have seen. War is coming. In foreign fields, war of the whole wide world with all your boys falling down in the mud. Do you think they will thank the man who taught them it was glorious?" Tyra bit her tongue sharply. She actually agreed with that. She knew that the World Wars lead to a lot of good things in the future but… Now? For these boys here? It was the worst thing that could have happened.

"Don't you forget, boy," the Headmaster snapped "I have been a soldier. I was in South Africa. I used my dead mates for sandbags. I fought with the butt of my rifle when the bullets ran out and I would go back there tomorrow for King and Country."

Baines waved his hand "Et cetera, et cetera." He raised his gun, pointing it at Mr Philips. Tyra grabbed the other man's arm, whirling him away from the beam that was about to pulverize him. Said beam only missed me by inches. Baines shot her a glare "Run along, Headmaster. Run back to school. And send us Mr Smith. The girl we'll happily keep here."

Tyra sneered "I'd like to see you try." She shoved Philips towards the Headmaster and took off, careful to not run too fast while they could still see me. Tyra dodged several scarecrows along with more than one beam.

She ran around for a while longer before she looped around back to the school, making sure that she lost the last of the scarecrows as well. While they weren't that fast, they seemed to be everywhere. Bit like cockroaches really. As soon as she got close enough, she saw a figure on one of the dormitory windows, climbing out. Tyra glanced around, making sure that no one was nearby and hurried over "Tim?" she frowned, recognizing the boy. Tim startled and his hands slipped from the ledge. He was about to let out a sound of surprise when Tyra caught him, her hand wrapping around his mouth "Shh. Do you want them to find us?"

"Miss…"

Tyra cut him off "I think we're a bit beyond formality now, don't you?" She sent him a small grin "It's Tyra or Ty. I don't care either way. Just – for the love of everything don't call me Miss Mikaelson."

"I have to find him," Tim murmured, clutching something in his hand. A flash of gold caught Tyra's attention.

"Find… Wait." She recognized the watch he was holding "Is that the Doctor's watch?"

Tim shifted uncomfortably "It wanted me to take it," he admitted, holding it out to her "He said it was too soon."

Tyra placed her hand over the gold metal for a moment, watching Tim's eyes widen in surprise "Can you help me find him? I'm not sure where they are now."

"The watch can lead us," the boy murmured "We have to get going. It's time."

"Did he tell you that?" she questioned.

Tim looked over his shoulder at the school "It has to be time. We have to stop them."

"Well, you're definitely right about that," Tyra sighed and gestured for him to follow "Come on. You tell me where to go and I keep an eye and ear out for the scarecrows."

With that, they walked in silence for a few minutes, getting further and further away from the school and closer to the Cartwright's cottage "He showed me…" Tim broke off before shaking his head "I saw so much. The watch – It showed me so many incredible things. How do you do it?"

"What?" Tyra blinked, looking at Timothy over her shoulder.

"Travel with him. See all those wonders, all that death."

Tyra bit her lip "Honestly? I like it. Like being around him. He showed me a lot of things and helped me more than I would ever be able to help him."

"I don't think so," Tim denied "I saw you in the watch."

"Did you now?"

The boy nodded "At first, I was afraid of you. You and Mr Smith but… He really is magnificent, isn't he?"

Tyra smiled "He's fantastic," she agreed, stopping at a cross in the road "Where to now? I've never been to that cottage."

"Over there," Tim pointed to the dark outline of a cottage in the darkness of the night. He sped up, hurrying over to the closed door.

Tyra tilted her head, hearing muffled voices inside "_And that's what you want me to become?_" John scoffed.

"They're in there," she nodded, knocking lightly.

Everything inside froze "_What if it's them?_" Joan whispered.

Martha snorted "_I'm not an expert but I don't think scarecrows knock._"

"Why would scarecrows knock?" Tyra asked as soon as the door was open.

Martha stepped back "Of course, you heard that. Where have you been?"

"Oh, you know," Tyra waved off, prodding Tim inside in front of her "Running around, avoiding scarecrows. I don't think I have to go out for a jog anytime soon."

As soon as she was inside, John shot forward, tilting her head up "Are you alright? They didn't hurt you, did they?"

Tyra brushed his hands off and shook her head "No. I was avoiding them, leading some of the scarecrows away from the school. I don't think it worked, though."

Tim stepped forward when John made to say something in protest "I brought you this."

Martha looked from the boy to Tyra, causing her to shrug "He took it from his room, apparently."

"Hold it," Martha urged, nodding to the watch.

John shook his head, taking a couple of steps away "I won't."

"Please," Martha pleaded "Just hold it."

"It told me to find you," Tim explained, still holding out the watch "It wants to be held."

Joan frowned at the boy "You've had this watch all this time? Why didn't you return it?"

"Because it was waiting." Tim's tone was defensive. Tyra placed a calming hand on his shoulder. Neither Martha nor she blamed him. If that was what the Doctor wanted, then he would have found a way to return to John. Tim looked at her uncertainly "And because I was so scared of the Doctor."

"Why?"

Tim shrugged "Because I've seen him. He's like fire and ice and rage. He's like the night and the storm in the heart of the sun."

"Stop it," John snapped.

"He's ancient and forever," Timothy continued "He burns at the centre of time and he can see the turn of the universe."

John clenched his hands "Stop it. I said stop it."

"And he's wonderful," Tim finished.

Joan pulled out the journal "I've still got this. The journal."

"Those are just stories," John shook his head.

"They're not," Tyra whispered, holding her hand out for the book "This is his life, John. Our life."

John looked up at her "You knew all this time," he accused "You knew that I was… I was this man."

"I did," Tyra nodded "But you're not him, John. You're you, while the Doctor is the Doctor. There are a lot of similarities but you're different people."

* * *

Outside, there was a big bang, causing the cottage to shake violently. Martha hurried to the window "What the hell?" From Tyra's place in the middle of the room, she could see the night light up as fireballs fell to Earth a little way away.

"They're destroying the village," Joan gasped.

"The watch," John breathed, grabbing it from Tim's hands.

Tyra held out her hands, stopping him from going anywhere "What are you doing?"

"Can you hear it?" Tim asked, looking at the man curiously. Tyra could barely make out a voice. Nothing like the feeling she got earlier when the watch was open. This time, there was only undecipherable murmuring.

John licked his lips, looking at his hands "I think he's asleep. Waiting to awaken."

"Why did he speak to me?"

"Oh." And even this one word was just so… Doctor. This was him, not John "Low-level telepathic field. You were born with it. Just an extrasynaptic engram causing…" He broke off with a huge gasp "Is that how he talks?"

"That's him," Martha laughed happily "All you have to do is open it and he's back."

Tyra closed her eyes at her words. While they were true, she was forgetting one very important thing. Something that Tyra couldn't forget. Not now. She owed him that much. John Smith was alive. Oh, so very alive and it was unfair to ask him to open the watch, to practically kill himself to bring the Doctor back.

John looked at Martha with a look of shocked realization "You knew this all along and yet you watched while Miss Tyra and I…" His head turned to her "You knew. Why – How could you do that?"

"I didn't plan on it," Tyra murmured "I really, really didn't. But you're so similar to him and I just couldn't." She looked down "I was trying to stay away from you and when that didn't work, I just… I'm really sorry, John. I know that it's unfair to ask you to…"

John gritted his teeth "So you just expect me to die?"

"It was always going to end, though," Martha argued "The Doctor said the Family's got a limited lifespan and that's why they need to consume a Time Lord. Otherwise, three months and they die. Like mayflies, he said."

Tyra closed my eyes in pain. She didn't want John to die but she also wanted to have the Doctor back. There was no right way in this. One way or another, someone would die. Either it was John Smith or it was the Doctor if John gave the Family the watch. Tyra glanced from Martha to John before walking over to join Joan by the window. The woman was leafing through the journal, hoping to find something useful. Maybe there was something. Tyra didn't read through it completely, mostly the parts where John had written about us, about their talks.

"Are you alright?" Joan asked, studying her intently.

"I don't know," Tyra murmured, leaning against the wall next to her "Is it bad that I want the Doctor back? I don't want John to leave but…"

Joan tilted her head "But you've loved the Doctor for longer."

"Yeah," she nodded before looking over at the man "But I still think that I messed up. I shouldn't have gotten close to John. He doesn't deserve any of this just because he happened to share a body with the Doctor.

"People are dying out there," Martha shouted, startling Tyra a little "They need him and Ty and I need him. Because you've got no idea of what he's like. I've only just met him. It wasn't even that long ago but he is everything. He's just everything to…" Martha looked at Tyra "You just have to change back. If not for me, then do it for Tyra."

"Martha," she spoke up, shaking her head "I –"

An explosion sounded close by "It's getting closer," Tim whispered.

All of a sudden, John perked up "I should have thought of it before. I can give them this. Just the watch. Then they can leave and I can stay as I am."

"You can't do that," Martha snapped.

"If they want the Doctor, they can have him."

Tyra swallowed "You can't." She glanced to the others "Could you… Could you give us a moment? I think John and I should talk." Tim and Martha nodded, walking out with Joan following behind "John, if you give them the watch, they would live forever. There is a reason that the Doctor went this far to keep them from getting to him." His eyes welled up and Tyra stepped a little closer, pulling him into a hug "I'm really sorry. I hate asking anything like this from you. I really do like you in your own way."

"Will he love you?" John asked quietly, tears still falling onto the fabric of her dress.

Tyra licked her lips "I think he will. Actually, no. I know that he already does. I know that he does and I love him too. We just admitted it a couple of months ago and got together a few days before the Family found us." It was weird to admit it to him because there was a high chance that he would remember if John decided to open the watch "It's your decision, John. I can't take that from you but I ask that you consider everything." Tyra placed her hand on top of the one that was holding the watch.

_Vision_

_Tyra gasped in surprise when she saw John kissing her, while she was wearing a wedding dress._

* * *

_John holding a baby, looking down at Tyra on the bed. Her heart clenched when she thought about this. This was never going to happen thanks to her mother. Tyra wasn't sure whether she would have wanted children but… Now she didn't have a choice._

* * *

_John was lying on his death bed as an old man, holding her hand "They're all safe, aren't they?" he rasped "The children, the grandchildren. Everyone's safe?"_

"_Everyone's safe," Tyra heard herself say "And they all send their love, John."_

_John smiled a little "Well, it's time. Thank you." With that, he closed his eyes and drifted off._

_End Vision_

Tyra opened her eyes to John's gasp "Did you see?"

"Yeah, but John…" Tyra started.

"The Doctor would never be able to have a life like that, would he?" John challenged.

Tyra shook her head "No, he couldn't. But then again, neither could I."

"What?"

"John, what you dreamed about me," she licked her lips and looked up at him "I'm not human. I can't age, can't have children. We could never have the life you just saw."

His shoulders dropped "I…"

"What are you going to do?" Tyra asked when it looked like he was lost in thoughts.

John didn't answer, instead pulling her closer, pressing a kiss to her lips. Halfway through, she noticed a change and broke away. The Doctor looked down at Tyra with a smile before ducking his head, kissing her again "I love you, Tyra."

"I… Yeah," Tyra breathed "I love you too."

"I have to go." He turned on his heels, hurrying out of the cottage and past the others to where the spaceship of the Family was parked.

* * *

Tyra didn't even have any time to process what happened before Martha practically stormed in, demanding what happened. She explained everything as well as she could but internally, she was worried about what the Doctor would say. Would he be mad that she fell in love with John?

It took another explosion – This one coming from the field where the spaceship had been before the Doctor got back. He just silently appeared at the cottage "Ty, Martha, I'm going to take care of the Family. You two come and meet me by the Clarke's field, alright? I won't be long."

"Alright," Martha nodded as they watched the Time Lord disappear back into the slowly lightening sky.

"Come on," Tyra sighed, running a tired hand over her face "Let's get going."

Martha nodded, patting Tim's shoulder "Do you want to come with us to the Tardis?" Martha offered "I'm sure you'd love it."

"Maybe," Tim murmured "But… I'll meet you there. There's something I have to do first."

"Okay then."

Martha walked out and Tyra was about to follow her when she caught sight of Joan sitting on one of the chairs, her face buried in her hands "Martha? You go ahead. I'll be there as fast as I can."

"Are you sure?" Martha asked, seeing what she was talking about.

"Yeah, I am. Go." When Martha was gone, Tyra walked over to Joan, sitting down in the chair next to her "I'm sorry."

Joan looked up, her eyes a little red "What could you possibly be sorry for? You didn't make John open the watch. You didn't make him love you instead of me."

"I –" Tyra closed her eyes. She wasn't good at comforting people. Children, to an extent but women? Yeah, no "I think John could have had an amazing life with you if that makes you feel any better. I would have never been able to give him what he truly wanted."

"What do you mean?" Joan asked.

Tyra gestured to the book on the table "You read the book. I think it said some things about me in there. I wish I could make you feel any better but… I can't. The only thing I can do is to promise that you won't have to see him again."

"Why are you even talking to me?" Joan asked after a few moments of silence "I wasn't exactly nice to you or Martha."

"Because I know how it feels to get left in the dust," Tyra told her quietly "It will hurt for a while but you'll move on. I'm sure of it. You're a strong woman, Joan. I know that you will be fantastic. Maybe even more so than the Doctor." She got up from the chair and placed her head on Joan's shoulder "Do you know what I think? I think that you should keep this." Tyra pressed the journal into her hands and smiled "To remind you that you can do everything you wish to do. That you're stronger than you give yourself credit for."

Joan looked at the book for a moment before she smiled "Thank you."

"You're more than welcome," she nodded "So, this is goodbye, then."

"I mean it, Tyra. Thank you for talking to me. John was never mine, I can see that clear as day but from what I've seen. You and the Doctor… Don't let him go. Even if you're scared."

Tyra inclined her head "I don't want to let him go. I will if he wishes it after finding out what I kept from him but… No, I would let him go. Let go of the life I have with him if he wants me to."

"You would sacrifice your own happiness for what he wants?"

"Yes," Tyra replied without a hesitation before turning around to walk out the door. She looked in the direction of the field before shaking her head, speeding to the school. She wanted to check up on the boys one more time before she was gone again. The whole time she watched them, she stayed in the shadows, out of sight. Once Tyra was sure that they were fine, a little shaken up but ultimately alright, she made her way to the field where the Tardis was already waiting for her.

"Is it done?" the Doctor asked when Tyra trudged through the pouring rain up to meet them.

Martha looked at her "How was she?"

"Not as bad as she could have been," Tyra shrugged "You might not have been interested in her as John but she had feelings for you. I think she's going to appreciate the journal. Something to hold onto, you know?"

"Good," the Doctor nodded "That's good. Come on, you two. It's time we moved on."

Martha turned her head to him, the atmosphere suddenly turning awkward. Tyra wasn't sure what they had been talking about before she got back but apparently nothing good "So… Here we are then."

"There we are, yes," the Doctor returned before a smile stole its way onto his face "And I never said. Thanks for looking after me. Both of you." He pulled Martha into a hug before doing the same to Tyra.

"Doctor. Martha. Tyra," Tim called from the bottom of the small hill. Tyra turned in the Doctor's embrace, his arms still wrapped around her comfortably.

"Tim Timothy Timber," the Doctor grinned.

Tim came to a stop in front of them "I just wanted to say goodbye. And thank you. Because I've seen the future and I now know what must be done." He paused, shuffling in the wet mud "It's coming, isn't it? The biggest war ever."

Martha put a hand on his shoulder "You don't have to fight."

"I think we do," Tim shook his head.

"But you could get hurt."

Timothy laughed "Well, so could you two, travelling around with him but it's not going to stop you."

The Doctor tightened his arms a little before slipping one of his hands into his pocket "Tim, I'd be honoured if you'd take this." He handed the fob watch over, watching the boy closely.

"I can't hear anything," Tim exclaimed in surprise.

"No," the Doctor agreed "It's just a watch now. But keep it with you. For good luck."

Martha grabbed him in a tight hug "Look after yourself." She pressed a small kiss to his cheek before going into the Tardis to finally escape the rain.

The Doctor sent Tim a grin "You'll like this bit," he advised, walking through the open door as well.

Tyra smiled at Timothy in front of her "Be careful out there." She looked over her shoulder "And kick some butt for me, would you?" As soon as she closed the door behind her, the Tardis dematerialised and they were back to their normal lives.


	26. Utopia

**MidnightQueen (Guest) - I totally get where you're coming from and this isn't meant to justify anything but I just thought I'd explain my side of it. The way I see it, the Doctor isn't really accepting that she kills... He is accepting her and - whether he likes it or not - killing is something she has done for over a thousand years. He isn't happy that she kills but she isn't really doing it often anymore. You'll see his reaction to when Kol comes in more. It's gonna be a while though. I hope this makes sense to some extent? But yes, his personality is different. I accept that :P**

**Nick**

"Cardiff," the Doctor called out with a huge grin.

Martha stared at him in shocked disappointment "Cardiff?"

Tyra nudged her in the side "You'd be surprised. Cardiff is almost as bad as London when it comes to aliens… Not quite as extreme but there's been some around over the past few years. Maybe compare it to New York."

"Exactly," the Doctor nodded "But the thing about Cardiff, it's built on a rift in time and space, just like California and the San Andreas Fault but the rift bleeds energy. Every now and then I need to open up the engines, soak up the energy and use it as fuel."

"So, it's a pit stop," Martha realized. Tyra smiled sadly, remembering the last time they had to stop in Cardiff for a little bit. Martha raised her eyebrow at Tyra "Why do you look like that?"

She tilted her head "Look like what?"

"Like that," Martha pointed out "Why are you sad?"

"Ah," Tyra mumbled, playing with a few strands of her hair "Sorry, I was just thinking about the last time we had to stop here."

The Doctor placed his hand on Tyra's shoulder, squeezing lightly "It should only take about twenty seconds. The rift's been active." That actually made him frown and move around the console to stare at the monitor.

His eyes darkened a little and Tyra was about to say something when Martha interrupted, drawing her attention away from him "Wait a minute," Martha snapped her fingers "They had an earthquake in Cardiff a couple of years ago. Was that you?"

"Bit of trouble with a Slitheen," the Doctor waved off "A long time ago. Lifetimes. I was a different man back then." He sent the two girls a bright grin that didn't reach his eyes "Finito. All powered up." Before Tyra reached him, he set the time rotor moving and almost as soon as they took off, the console exploded.

Martha immediately held onto the railing tightly "Whoa. What's that?"

"We're accelerating into the future," the Doctor breathed, his wide eyes still on the monitor. Tyra fought to get back to her feet, rubbing at her arm with a small grimace. The small burn that she had gotten from the console was already disappearing "The year one billion. Five billion. Five trillion. Fifty trillion? What? The year one hundred trillion? That's impossible."

"Why?" Martha blinked "What happens then?"

The Doctor looked up at them in trepidation "We're going to the end of the universe."

"_Doctor,_" a faint voice was shouting somewhere. Tyra's head snapped around and she frowned. What was that? It… It sounded like Jack but that was impossible, right? She shook her head. Maybe her mind was playing tricks on her. After all, she had been thinking about the last time the Doctor and she had been in Cardiff with Jack.

The Tardis fell quiet and the Doctor straightened cautiously "Well, we've landed."

"What's out there?" Martha asked.

The Doctor sighed, running a hand through his hair "I don't know."

Martha shot him a smirk "Say that again. That's rare."

"Not even the Time Lords came this far," the Doctor explained "We should leave. We should… go. We should really, really go."

Tyra raised my eyebrows at him "The last time you tried to talk yourself out of something, you jumped into a pit."

"You're right," he nodded in agreement "Why bother." With that he grinned, running to the door.

* * *

Outside was a Quarry of some sort and it was surprisingly cold "Oh, my God," Martha breathed, running towards a figure Tyra hadn't noticed until just then. Jack… He was actually here? So, it had been him she heard earlier? "Can't get a pulse," Martha shook her head "Hold on. You've got that medical kit thing." She shot up, running into the Tardis.

"Hello again," the Doctor murmured, making Tyra's head snap around to him "Oh, I'm sorry."

She crossed her arms "Sorry? You're sorry about what?"

Before he could open his mouth, Martha ran back out with the medical kit "Here we go. Get out of the way. It's a bit odd, though. Not very hundred trillion. That coat's more like World War Two."

"I think he came with us," the Doctor told her.

Martha looked over her shoulder with a frown "How do you mean, from Earth?"

"Must have been clinging to the outside of the Tardis all the way through the vortex," the Doctor explained, trying desperately to avoid Tyra's accusing gaze "Well, that's very him."

"What, do you know him?" Martha questioned, looking back down at the obviously dead man. But he couldn't be dead, right? Tyra rubbed at her forehead in agitation. What the hell was she missing? How could Jack be dead and yet they had seen him only a couple of months ago?

The Doctor hummed "Friend of ours. Used to travel with me, back in the old days."

Martha swallowed heavily "But he's – I'm sorry, there's no heartbeat. There's nothing. He's dead." Just as the words passed her lips, Jack shot up with a huge gasp. Martha let out a scream "Oh, so much for me. It's alright. Just breathe deep. I've got you."

Everything Tyra had or hadn't been feeling flew out of the window as she stared at Jack with a slightly exasperated look on her face when he grinned up at Martha "Captain Jack Harkness," he leered "And who are you?"

Martha blushed lightly "Martha Jones."

"Nice to meet you, Martha Jones."

The Doctor scoffed "Oh, don't start."

"I was only saying hello," Jack huffed, glaring at the Doctor in annoyance.

"I don't mind," Martha shook her head, helping the Captain up from the ground.

Jack narrowed his eyes on the man across from him "Doctor."

"Captain," the Doctor shot back, the tone equally as dark.

"Good to see you."

The Doctor hummed "And you. Same as ever… Although, have you had work done?"

"You can talk," Jack cried out.

"Oh yes, the face," the Doctor blinked "Regeneration. How did you know this was me?"

The Captain raised his eyebrow and gestured to Tyra "Valkyrie and the police box kind of give it away. I've been following you for a long time… You abandoned me."

"What?" Tyra spoke up, whirling around to face the Doctor "You did what?"

"You should have known that, Tyra," Jack pointed out.

Tyra shook her head "Jack, the last thing I remember from the game station is that you died. I woke up in the Tardis when we were already gone."

"Did you…?"

"Getting killed by a Dalek hurts like a bitch," she cut him off "I asked him what happened later and he told me you stayed behind." With that, she threw a glare at the Doctor next to her "He just left out the part where he was the one who left you and about that little thing you have apparently going on. Are you okay?"

Jack looked at Tyra for a moment before a small smile lit up his features. He leaned down, capturing her lips with his "I missed you, Valkyrie."

Tyra just wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly. For once she ignored the fact that he had kissed her, feeling the Doctor's half-annoyed half-exasperated gaze burning into her back… She didn't care, though. Tyra hadn't seen Jack in far too long and one more kiss wouldn't hurt "Missed you too, Jackie."

"So…" he trailed off with a small flirty grin, his eyes flashing to the Doctor for the shortest of seconds "Since I'm older now. Does that mean that you'll give me a chance?"

Tyra snorted, thinking about their conversation before he left to fight the Daleks "Sorry, Jack. I still have quite a few centuries on you."

"You have quite a few centuries on everybody," he huffed jokingly, pressing another kiss to the top of my head "Except for maybe the Doctor… Oh well, I'm better off with you being my Valkyrie anyway."

Martha looked at the two of them in surprise "You two are really close, aren't you?"

"Yup," Tyra grinned, letting go of the Captain "Ooh. That reminds me… Martha, I'll have to show you the video I have from 2005 of how I com… hmpf." The last part of her sentence was muffled when Jack pressed his hand over her mouth.

"Moving on," he called, louder than necessary, turning back to the Doctor "Just got to ask… The Battle of Canary Wharf. I saw the list of the dead. It said Rose Tyler."

Tyra shifted away from him, going to stand next to Martha as the Doctor shook his head violently "Oh, no. Sorry, she's alive. Parallel world, safe and sound. And Mickey, and her mother."

"Oh, yes," Jack cheered, throwing his arms around the Time Lord in a bear hug.

Martha shook her head "Good old Rose."

Tyra placed her hand on Martha's arm and spoke up quietly, making sure the two men wouldn't be able to hear "Don't worry about it… Rose was – She was a friend to all of us. We only really grew apart after the incident where Jack left – was left behind. You're just as good of a Companion as Rose. No matter what the idiot over there tells you. He has a habit of noticing other's feelings… Except for mine apparently."

"Thank you, Tyra," Martha smiled, tugging her after the two men "So, what exactly happened to you?"

Jack turned his head around to look down at Martha "So there I was, stranded in the year two hundred one hundred, ankle-deep in Dalek durst and he goes off without me." He held up his wrist, tapping his Vortex Manipulator "But I had this. I used to be a Time Agent. It's called a Vortex Manipulator. He's not the only one who can time travel."

The Doctor snorted "Oh, excuse me. That is not time travel. It's like, I've got a sports car and you've got a space hopper."

"Not this again," Tyra groaned, shaking her head in annoyance.

Martha laughed "Oh ho. Boys and their toys."

"Alright," Jack huffed, holding up his hands "So I bounced. I thought 21st century, the best place to find the Doctor, except that I got it a little wrong. Arrived in 1869, this thing burnt out, so it was useless…"

"Told you," the Doctor coughed.

Jack shot him a small glare "I had to live through the entire twentieth century waiting for a version of you that would coincide with me."

"But…" Martha opened and closed her mouth a few times "That makes you more than one hundred years old."

"And looking good, don't you think?" Jack smirked before shaking his head "So I went to the time rift, based myself there because I knew you'd come back to refuel. Until finally I get a signal on this detecting and here we are."

Jack gestured to his bag and Tyra blinked with a frown "Jack? What is in there? It sounds… bubbly."

"Ah…" Jack shifted "Don't worry about it. I just had a hand in detecting the Doctor."

Martha turned to the Doctor before Tyra could say anything else "But the thing is, how come you left him behind, Doctor?"

"I was busy," the Time Lord defended himself weakly.

"Is that what happens, though, seriously?" Martha demanded "Do you just get bored with us one day and disappear?"

Jack snorted "Not if you're blonde… or a vampire."

Tyra shot him a look "Leave me out of this, Jack. It's him you're mad at, not me."

"Sorry, Valkyrie," Jack mumbled, ruffling her hair.

Martha tilted her head "Oh, she was blonde? Oh, what a surprise."

"You two," the Doctor hissed at them, not knowing what else to do "We're at the end of the universe, alright? Right at the edge of knowledge itself and you're busy… blogging. Come on, Ty. If they have nothing better to do, let's leave them to it."

Tyra glanced from him to Martha and Jack before shrugging and hurrying after him "Are you alright?"

"Sure," the Doctor nodded "It's just… First Rose and Sarah Jane and now the two of them?"

"Ignore them," Tyra advised him "Jack is just mad and – if I'm honest with you – I get where he's coming from but you know Jack. After a good explanation, he'll be fine."

The Doctor nodded absentmindedly, stopping at a cliff "Yeah," he mumbled "Yeah. Maybe."

"Is that a city?" Martha asked from behind us as they caught up to them.

"A city or a hive," the Doctor explained, already back in his element "Or a nest or a conglomeration. Like it was grown. But look, there. That's like pathways, roads? Must have been some sort of life, long ago."

Martha frowned "What killed it?"

The Doctor shrugged "Time. Just time. Everything's dying now. All the great civilizations have gone." He glanced up at the sky "This isn't just night. All the stars have burned up and faded away into nothing."

"They must have an atmospheric shell," Jack remarked "We should be frozen to death."

"Well, we, maybe," the Doctor spoke up "Not so sure about you, Jack." Tyra raised her hand to her head, barely restraining herself from hitting the Doctor. So much for him wanting Jack to forgive him. Whatever he was trying… This wasn't the way to achieve what he wanted to do.

"What about the people?" Martha demanded, deciding to ignore the men's silent pissing contest. Either she had seen enough of that to be able to ignore it or she just didn't care "Does no one survive?"

The Doctor sighed "I suppose we have to hope life will find a way."

Tyra's head turned towards the faint, panicked heartbeat and the pounding footsteps only to see a man running through the city pursued by a group of people with torched "Well, he's not doing too bad," she said at the same time as Jack who had caught sight of the man just a couple of seconds after Tyra.

"Human," one of the group hissed out, just loud enough for Tyra to hear.

"Is it me or does that look like a hunt?" the Doctor asked before running off towards the lower level "Come on."

Jack ran after him, grinning hugely. He reached out and grabbed Tyra's hand from where he was "Oh, I've missed this." They ran to help the man and as soon as they caught up with him, Jack pushed him behind him "I've got you." The Captain aimed his revolver at the group of what looked to be a tribe.

The Doctor narrowed his eyes "Jack, don't you dare." Jack rolled his eyes but fired into the air, causing the tribe to stop in its tracks.

"What the hell are they?" Martha breathed.

The man whirled around "There's more of them. We've got to keep going."

"I've got a ship nearby," the Doctor pointed out "It's safe. It's over there." More of the tribe people appeared on the cliff, causing him to back-pedal "Or maybe not."

"We're close to the silo," the man pointed out "If we get to the silo, then we're safe."

The Doctor turned to the others "Silo?" he questioned sheepishly.

"Silo," Jack nodded in agreement, still pointing his gun at the group in front of them.

"Silo for me," Martha agreed and then they were off again.

The man they had sort of saved was leading the way. It didn't take long before tall gates came into view "It's the Futurekind," he shouted at the guards "Open the gate."

"Show me your teeth," the guard demanded "Show me your teeth. Show me your teeth."

The man whirled around to glare at the people he had led here "Show him your teeth."

They all sort of grimaced awkwardly, showing them their very normal and non-pointed teeth, no matter how stupid it actually seemed. The guard nodded "Human. Let them in. Let them in." The metal gates were opened far enough to let us in "Close. Close." Another guard fired its machine gun at the ground in front of the tribe as they got too close.

"Humans," the leader of the tribe breathed out, staring at all of them greedily "Humani. Make feast."

"Go back to where you came from," the guard demanded, waving his gun around "I said, go back. Back."

Jack huffed "Oh, don't tell him to put his gun down."

"He's not my responsibility," the Doctor shrugged.

"And I am?" Jack asked, crossing his arms "That makes a change."

Tyra hit both of them over the head "Can you two just stop? This is getting really annoying and we might have a bit of a bigger problem if you haven't noticed."

"Kind watch you," the leader pointed out "Kind hungry." He let out a yell, as the tribe backed away and left.

"Thank you for that," the Doctor smiled lightly.

The guard looked at all of the newcomers for a moment "Right. Let's get you inside."

The man who had come with them spoke up "My name is Padra Toc Shafe Cane. Tell me. Just tell me, can you take me to Utopia?"

"Oh yes, sir," the guard nodded "Yes, I can."

"What's Utopia?" Tyra frowned, looking at the Doctor "I mean, I know what it's supposed to be in literature and everything but… Is there an actual planet called Utopia?"

The Doctor shrugged "I don't know. I really, really don't know." He caught the guard before he could walk past them again "I need something from outside. It looks like a box, a big blue box. I'm sorry but I really need it back. It's stuck out there."

"I'm sorry," Padra cut in "But my family were heading for the silo. Did they get here? My mother is Kistane Shafe Cane. My brother's name is Beltone."

The guard sighed "The computers are down but you can check the paperwork." He looked over to a corner "Creet," he called out "Passenger needs help."

A young boy appeared with a clipboard in hand "Right. What do you need?" Creet questioned as Padra walked over to him.

"A blue box, you say," the guard turned back to the Doctor.

The Doctor nodded "Big, tall, wooden. Says police."

"We're driving out for the last water collection. I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you," the Doctor breathed in relief.

Creet and Padra had apparently found what they were looking for on the list "Come on."

"Sorry," Martha called out, stopping the young boy "But how old are you?"

"Old enough to work," Creet shot back "This way." They followed Creet through the corridors where people were gathered on the floors. Some had put up pictures, others hadn't "Kistane Shafe Cane. Kistane Shafe Cane," Creet boy called out, looking from left to right, hoping to help Padra find his family "Kistane and Beltone Shafe Cane? We're looking for a Kistane and Beltone Shafe Cane."

Padra looked ready to freak out when no one answered "The Shafe Canes, anyone? Kistane from Red Force Five? My name's Padra."

"It's like a refugee camp," Martha breathed, looking at all the people in sadness.

Jack hummed "Stinking," he grimaced, catching the eye of a heavy-set man "Sorry. No offence, not you."

Tyra snorted "You'll never change, Jack. Still putting your foot into your mouth."

"Always, Valkyrie," Jack winked.

The Doctor rolled his eyes at their banter but there was a content smile on his face as his hand found Tyra's "Don't you see that? The ripe old smell of humans. You survived. Oh, you might have spent a million years evolving into clouds of gas and another million as downloads but you always revert back to the same basic shape. The fundamental humans."

"'Ripe smell of humans'," Tyra mocked him before shrugging "Well, that Shakespeare play we watched was worse. At least these people aren't at fault…"

"I forgot about your nose," Jack smirked "And I'm really glad that I'm not you right now."

Tyra's eyes narrowed "You forget I still have that video. And I will show it to Martha if you don't behave, Jackie."

Martha shot us a curious look "What video?"

"Oh," the Doctor laughed "You got the Tardis to record it for you? Why haven't you told me that before? I missed it the first time." He grumbled under his breath about spaceships betraying him by liking his Companions more.

"Is there a Kistane Shafe Cane?" Creet called out again.

A woman stood up a little way down the corridor "That's me."

"Mother?" Padra breathed, running towards her.

"Oh, my God." Kistane's face lit up with a huge smile "Padra."

Padra turned to a young man next to them "Beltone?"

"It's not all bad news," Martha remarked, watching the family reunite.

Behind them, a young man stood up almost as soon as he saw Jack. The Captain sent him a flirty smile "Captain Jack Harkness. And who are you?"

"Stop it," the Doctor huffed in annoyance, spotting a door that led to the outside "Give us a hand with this. It's half deadlocked. I need you to overwrite the code. Let's find out where we are."

Together, Jack and the Doctor managed to get the door open. The Doctor went to step through and nearly fell down the huge rocket. Only a quick action from both Jack and me prevented his fall "Gotcha," Jack said.

"Thanks," the Doctor mumbled, glancing down at the outer side of the rocket.

"How did you ever cope without me?" Jack questioned, glancing at Tyra "Well, I guess it had a lot to do with Tyra."

Tyra shook my head "You give me too much credit, Jack. The Doctor has turned into an overprotective idiot who doesn't want me in danger while he dives in headfirst."

"Yeah," Jack smirked lightly "I'm sure that's all it is."

"Just… stop," she hit him lightly, trying to stop herself from blushing. She didn't like people talking about it… It made her uncomfortable. It wasn't that she was embarrassed by the Doctor, rather she didn't really know how to react to people openly talking about her relationship – not that Jack knew about them yet "Please."

He held up his hands in surrender "Fine, fine."

Meanwhile, Martha had glanced out of the now open door and whistled "Now that is what I call a rocket."

"They're not refugees," the Doctor realized "They're passengers."

"He said they were going to Utopia," Martha pointed out, remembering what the guard had said earlier.

The Doctor hummed "The perfect place. Hundred trillion years, it's the same old dream. You recognise those engines?"

"Nope," Jack shook his head "Whatever it is, it's not rocket science. But it's hot, though." He fanned his face for a second, before shutting the door.

"Boiling," the Doctor agreed "But if the universe is falling apart, what does Utopia mean?"

An old man hurried up to them and compared to the other passengers he was dressed nicely and clean "The Doctor?" he asked, looking at Jack questioningly.

The Doctor raised his hand "That's me."

"Good," the old man nodded, grabbing his arm "Good, good, good, good, good. Good."

The Doctor glanced back as he was being dragged off, a little confused "It's good apparently."

* * *

The old man led them through the corridors and to what appeared to be a laboratory. Tyra wrinkled her nose at the slight smell the room had to it. It smelled… Like old food for some reason but who was she to complain? It was better than the corridors out there.

A blue bug lady turned to face them while the older man was dragging the Doctor around, showing him various pieces of equipment "Chan – Welcome – tho."

"Now," the older man cleared his throat "This is the gravitissimal accelerator. It's past its best but it works."

"Chan – Welcome – tho," the bug girl tried again, waving her hand lightly.

The old man didn't pay her any mind "And over here is the footprint impellor system. Now, do you know anything about end-time gravity…"

"Hello," Martha smiled at the girl, taking pity on her "Who are you?"

"And who is he?" Tyra asked, pointing to the old man.

"Chan – Chantho – tho," Chantho replied, turning towards the medical student and me "And that is Professor Yana."

Jack smiled charmingly, holding out his hand "Captain Jack Harkness."

"Stop it," the Doctor groaned, rolling his eyes.

Tyra nudged Jack's side lightly "See? That always gets his attention… No matter how far gone he is."

"Yeah," Jack huffed in annoyance "Can't I say hello to anyone?"

"Chan – I do not protest – tho," Chantho blushed lightly.

Jack winked at her "Maybe later, Blue." With that, he moved past her and over to the Doctor "So, what have we got here?"

The Doctor frowned at the equipment "And all of this feeds into the rocket?"

"Yeah," Yana nodded "Except without a stable footprint, you see, we're unable to achieve escape velocity. If only we could harmonise the five impact patterns and unify them – well – we might yet make it." He looked up at the Doctor with wide, pleading eyes "What do you think, Doctor? Any ideas?"

The Doctor tugged at his ear "Well, er, basically, sort of… Not a clue."

Yana deflated "Nothing?"

"I'm not from around these parts," the Doctor admitted quietly "I've never seen a system like it. Sorry."

"No, no," the older man shook his head "I'm sorry. It's my fault. There's been so little help."

Tyra startled lightly when Martha brushed past her to take a look at Jack's backpack. Apparently, she wasn't the only one to hear noises from it. She poked forward curiously and pulled out a transparent container that contained a very familiar hand "Oh, my God. You've got a hand? A hand in a jar. A hand in a jar in your bag."

"So that's what you mean with 'You had a hand in finding the Doctor'," Tyra nodded "I like it."

The Doctor gaped at the hand "But that – that – that's my hand."

Jack shifted uncomfortably "I said I had a Doctor detector," the Captain shrugged defensively.

Chantho blinked "Chan – is this a tradition amongst your people – tho?"

"Not on my street," Martha exclaimed before turning on the Doctor "What do you mean, that's your hand? You've got both of your hands. I can see them."

"Long story," the Doctor waved off "I lost my hand Christmas Day, in a sword fight. Tyra can confirm."

Tyra nodded when the heads turned to her "I can confirm how painful it looked. I swear, your stance made me cringe. How you won that fight, I'll never know." She paused "Then again. You did lose your hand."

Martha raised an eyebrow "What? And he grew another hand?"

"Er, yeah," the Doctor nodded "Yeah, I did." He wiggled his fingers "Yeah. Hello."

Yana tilted his head "Might I ask, what species are you?"

"Time Lord, last of," the Doctor replied "Heard of them? Legend or anything?" When Yana shook his head, he continued with a pout "Not even a myth? Blimey, end of the universe is a bit humbling."

Tyra smirked "About time that happens."

Chantho lowered her head a little "Chan – it is said that I am the last of my species too – tho."

"Sorry, what was your name?" the Doctor questioned, looking at Chantho for the first time.

"My assistant and good friend, Chantho," Yana spoke up hurriedly "A survivor of the Malmooth. This was their planet, Malcassairo, before we took refuge."

The Doctor hummed "The city outside, that was yours?"

"Chan – the conglomeration died – tho," the blue lady murmured sadly.

"Conglomeration," the Doctor muttered happily "That's what I said."

Jack and Tyra looked at him incredulously. The Captain shook his head "You're supposed to say sorry."

"Oh, yes," the Doctor grimaced in embarrassment "Sorry."

"Chan – most grateful – tho," Chantho nodded lightly.

Martha got back to the matter at hand "You grew another hand?"

"Hello, again," the Doctor waved and sighed at her look "It's fine. Look, really, it's me."

"All this time and you're still full of surprises," Martha mumbled, shaking her head in surrender.

"Chan – you are most unusual – tho," Chantho marvelled.

The Doctor shifted "Well…"

Jack rolled his eyes "So, what about those things outside? The Beastie Boys. What are they?"

"We call them the Futurekind," Yana pointed out "Which is a myth in itself but it's feared they are what we will become unless we reach Utopia."

The Doctor nodded "And Utopia is?"

"Oh, every Human knows Utopia," the Professor exclaimed in surprise "Where have you been?"

"Bit of a hermit," the Doctor waved off.

Yana looked at all of us in confusion "A hermit… with friends?"

"Hermits United," the Doctor continued "We meet up every ten years and swap stories about caves. It's good fun, for a hermit." Tyra dropped my head to Jack's shoulder and started laughing quietly. How did he always come up with the most ridiculous explanations that people actually believed? It was more than a little… well, ridiculous "So – er – Utopia?"

Yana pointed to a display on the gravitational field navigation system. At least that was what it said on the tin "The call came from across the stars, over and over again. Come to Utopia. Originating from that point."

The Doctor put on his glasses "Where is that?"

"Oh, it's far beyond the Condensate Wilderness, out towards the Wildlands and the Dark Matter reefs, calling us in. The last of the humans scattered across the night," Yana murmured.

"What do you think is out there?"

Yana shrugged "We can't know. A colony, a city, some sort of haven? The Science Foundation created the Utopia Project thousands of years ago to preserve mankind, to find a way of surviving beyond the collapse of reality itself. Now perhaps they found it. Perhaps not. But it's worth a look, don't you think?"

"Oh, yes," the Doctor nodded with a grin "And the signal keeps modulating, so it's not automatic." Yana's hands clenched around the metal of the device as he screwed up his face in pain "That's a good sign someone's out there. And that's – oh, that's a navigation matrix. So, you can fly without stars to guide you." The Doctor looked to the Professor and noticed his slightly sick look "Professor? Professor."

Yana snapped out of whatever trance he had been in "I – er – ahem, right, that's enough talk." He brushed off the worried looks he was getting "There's work to do. Now, if you could leave, thank you."

The Doctor looked at him carefully "You alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine," Yana nodded "And busy."

"Except that rocket is not going to fly, is it?" the Doctor asked, already knowing the answer. Yana froze with his hands on some switches "This footprint mechanism thing, it's not working."

"We'll find a way," the Professor shot back.

The Doctor stepped forward "You're stuck on this planet. And you haven't told them, have you? That lot out there, they still think they're going to fly."

Yana swallowed "Well, it's better to let them live in hope."

"Quite right, too," the Doctor inclined his head "And I must say, Professor – er – what was it?"

"Yana."

The Doctor continued "Professor Yana. This new science is well beyond me but all the same, a boost reversal circuit, in any time frame, mus circuit which reverses the boost. So, I wonder, what would happen if I did this?" He took his sonic to the end of a cable and pulled. Almost immediately, power surged through the machines.

"Chan – it's working – tho," Chantho breathed.

Yana opened and closed his mouth a few times before he could finally form words "But how did you do that?"

"Oh, we've been chatting away, I forgot to tell you," he sent the older man a cheeky grin "I'm brilliant."

"_All passengers prepare for boarding,_" the voice of the guard from earlier echoed through the room "_I repeat, all passengers prepare for immediate boarding. Destination, Utopia._" The Doctor coordinated what everyone should do, mostly telling Martha and me to fetch something or plug in one thing or another "_All troops report to silo. I repeat, all troops report to silo._"

Martha gestured to the corridor "I'll help out there. I don't think I'm much use here."

"Do you want me to go with you?" Tyra asked her, looking up from what she was doing.

"No, you stay here. I'll be fine."

"_All passengers prepare for immediate boarding. All passengers prepare for immediate boarding._"

The Doctor was standing by a grouping of wires when he froze, sniffing at one of them "Is this…?"

"Yes, gluten extract," Yana nodded "Binds the neutralino map together."

"That's food," the Time Lord exclaimed "You've built this system out of food and string and staples?" He shook his head in wonder "Professor Yana, you're a genius."

Yana glanced over with a deadpan expression "Says the man who made it work."

"Oh, it's easy coming in at the end," the Doctor pointed out "But you're stellar. This is – this is magnificent. And I don't often say that because, well, because of me."

Tyra leaned on his shoulder "He's right. He doesn't often say that," she agreed "He was trying to compliment a friend of mine a while ago and told me that he was good at stuff."

"Stuff?" Jack snorted "Really?"

"Apparently that was all he got," Tyra laughed.

The Doctor shoved her off lightly "Could the two of you stop ganging up on me? We've got things to do."

Yana didn't seem to notice our friendly argument. He was staring into space "Well, even my title is an affectation," he muttered "There hasn't been such a thing as a university for over a thousand years. I've spent my life going from one refugee ship to another."

"If you'd been born in a different time, you'd be revered," the Doctor smiled "I mean it. Throughout the galaxies."

Yana chuckled wetly "Oh, those damned galaxies. They had to go and collapse. Some admiration would have been nice. Yes, just a little, just once."

"Well, you've got it now," the Doctor murmured, squeezing the Yana's shoulder gently "But that footprint engine thing. You can't activate it from onboard. It's got to be from here." He looked at the man in respect "You're staying behind."

Yana nodded and looked over at where Chantho was working "With Chantho. She won't leave without me. Simply refuses."

The Doctor looked over as well "You'd give your life so they could fly."

"Oh, I think I'm a little too old for Utopia," Yana shrugged "Time I had some sleep."

"_Professor, tell the Doctor we've found his blue box,_" the guard called out.

The Doctor's face lit up "Ah!"

Jack waved him over and pointed to the monitor that showed the Tardis "Doctor?"

"Professor, it's a wild stab in the dark but I may just have found you a way out," the Doctor exclaimed happily.

* * *

A little while later, just after the Tardis had been brought into the laboratory, Tyra was lying on the couch that was standing against one of the walls. There was nothing she could do at the moment, so she decided to stay out of the way. She lifted her arm from where it had been over her eyes when Jack leaned his back against the edge near Tyra's head "So, how have you been in the last… How many years?"

"Two," Tyra murmured, burying her hand in her friend's hair "It's been two years. And I'm fine."

"And you haven't told him yet, have you?" Jack demanded quietly, looking over to where the Doctor was still working.

Tyra scoffed "He knows. We're together but I'm still not really comfortable with broadcasting this to everyone…"

"You're together?" The Captain let out a strangled noise "Huh… I didn't think either of you would take the first step. Why aren't you comfortable, though? I mean, you were practically hanging off each other before that as well."

"You don't get it," Tyra mumbled, curling up a little more "I've seen what… love does to people and I don't want that, Jack. I can't want that. If it means that the Doctor and I aren't all lovesick outside of the Tardis, then so be it."

He turned around "Hey," he sighed softly "I don't know everything about what you've seen but it's worth it. Especially if it's been going on as long as it has between you and the Doctor."

"You think so?" Tyra whispered, her eyes drifting to where the Doctor was "He said the same thing but I just don't want to lose what we have."

"And you won't," the Captain pointed out "The two of you can make it work. Hell, from what I've seen you have been unknowingly dating for a while now."

Tyra let out a small laugh "Unknowingly dating?"

"You wouldn't believe how often that happens," he nodded sagely.

Tyra flicked him in the head lightly "You're an idiot."

"But a handsome one," he bantered back.

"Maybe," she shot back "Enough about me and my lack of self-esteem… Is there anyone in your life?"

Jack shifted and licked his lips "Maybe. I mean, yes but I think I messed it up."

"Messed it up?" Tyra asked "What happened?"

With that Jack told me what happened "There's this guy. One of my teammates. Ianto Jones. He is the epitome of everything I could have ever hoped for but… I was too focussed on other things, so I'm a bit worried that it might be too late now." He told her everything that he did and didn't do.

Tyra smiled lightly when she heard the name. She remembered Ianto Jones and he was an incredible man and loyal to boot. If the way he had protected his fellow survivors was anything to go by. Some of the parts Jack told her made her want to slap her oblivious friend. That whole thing with his other coworker and all the stories of his past exploits weren't going to help him in the matter either. It was typically Jack but he had to understand that the 21st century was different. Here you were either all in or risked a rocky relationship. No going off for that bit on the side or whatever it was that Jack normally did "I suggest that you tell him all that, Jack. Be open with him and tell him how you feel. I know that it gets harder the older you get but… Don't shut him out. I think he's good for you. Also… It really helps to open up to someone once in a while. Keeping everything bottled inside is the worst thing you could do. Please, do yourself a favour and don't end up like the Doctor and me."

"You could come and meet him when we get back?" Jack offered suddenly "I mean, I would love to introduce the girl who is as good as my sister to the man who is as good as my lover."

Tyra laughed again "You're such a dork."

"Jack, Ty," the Doctor called out, lugging a thick cable from the Tardis "I need your help over here. Can you connect that to the console, Tyra? I'll do it on this end. Little bit of a cheat, but who's counting. Jack, you're in charge of the retro feeds."

Tyra walked into the Tardis when she heard Martha and Chantho coming back, the medical student letting out a relieved sigh "_Oh, am I glad to see that thing._"

"_Chan – Professor, are you alright – tho?_" Chantho questioned worriedly while Tyra connected everything on this end. There wasn't a lot to do, so she could manage on her own. She had gotten a bit better with technology concerning the Tardis but most of what the Doctor did, other than flying her or other simple repairs and connections were still way over her head.

"_Yes, I'm fine,_" Yana murmured quietly "_I'm fine. Just get on with it._"

Tyra walked back outside in time to see Jack handing Martha some circuits "Connect those circuits into the spar, same as that last lot. But quicker."

Martha looked at him in surprise "Ooo, yes, sir."

"You don't have to keep working," the Doctor told Yana "We can handle it."

"It's just a headache," the man waved off "It's just – just noise inside my head, Doctor. Constant noise inside my head."

The Doctor raised his eyebrow "What sort of noise?"

"It's the sound of drums." That made Tyra's head snap around. She caught the Doctor's eyes and tilted her head in question. She remembered what he had told her before about his former best friend and the noise inside his head. This couldn't be a coincidence, could it? The Doctor just shook his head, dismissing the possibility "More and more, as though it's getting closer."

"When did it start?" the Time Lord questioned, a little bit leery whether he believed in the possibility or not.

Yana looked up "Oh, I've had it all my life. Every waking hour." He smiled, shaking his head "Still, no rest for the wicked."

"What are you doing now?" Tyra asked Jack, trying to ignore Martha and Chantho giggling behind her. Really, Martha was such a girl sometimes.

* * *

The guard called out. Tyra turned to the monitor that showed the Tardis earlier but it was black "_Professor._ _Systems are down. Professor, are you getting me?_"

Yana hurried to the monitor, making it flicker into life "I'm here," the man nodded "We're ready. Now all you need to do is connect the couplings, then we can launch." The guard's face disappeared, causing Yana to curse "God sake. This equipment. Needs rebooting all the time."

"Anything I can do?" Martha asked "I've finished that lot."

"Yes, if you could." Yana gestured to a button next to where he was standing "Just press the reboot key every time the picture goes."

Martha nodded "Certainly, sir. Just don't ask me to do shorthand."

"_Are you still there?_" the guard called.

Yana nodded "Present and correct. Send your man inside. We'll keep the levels down from here."

In the control room, the guard disappeared for a moment before coming back "_He's inside. And good luck to him._"

"Captain, keep the dials below the red," Yana called out to where Jack and I were standing.

The Doctor leaned over the older man's shoulder "Where is that room?"

"It's underneath the rocket," Yana explained "Fix the couplings and the footprint can work. But the entire chamber is flooded with stet radiation."

"Stet?" the Doctor blinked "Never heard of it."

"You wouldn't want to," Yana chuckled "But it's safe enough if we can hold the radiation back from here." They quieted down, watching the monitor as an alarm sounded "It's rising. Nought point two. Keep it level."

Jack nodded, a look of concentration on his face "Yes, sir."

"Chan – we're losing power – tho," Chantho called out just after the second connection was made.

The Doctor grimaced "Radiation's rising."

"We've lost control," Jack shouted over to the others.

"The chamber's going to flood," Yana breathed.

The Doctor whirled around "Jack, override the vents."

Jack went to do as he said, pulling out two power cables "We can jump-start the override."

"Don't," the Doctor called out in alarm "It's going to flare." Tyra ducked to the side as power surged through Jack as he held the live ends together. She had been a little too close to him, so she rubbed at her leg trying to stop the tingling. Jack was lying on the ground, dead, by now.

Martha fell to her knees next to the Captain for a second time today "I've got him."

"Chan – Don't touch the cables – tho," Chantho warned, getting one of them away. Tyra made quick work of the other, hiding the sparking end where no one would accidentally touch it.

Yana looked down at the dead man "Oh, I'm so sorry."

"The chamber's flooded with radiation, yes?" the Doctor asked, a considering look on his face as Martha started giving Jack mouth-to-mouth.

"Without the couplings, the engines will never start," Yana mumbled, slumping in defeat "It was all for nothing."

"Oh, I don't know," the Doctor smirked "Martha, leave him."

Martha ignored him "You've got to let me try."

"Come on, come one," the Doctor pulled her away, making space for Tyra to kneel down next to Jack, ready for him to wake up again "Just listen to me." He looked back at the older man "It strikes me, Professor, you've got a room which no man can enter without dying. Is that correct?"

Yana nodded "Yes."

"Well," the Doctor started just as Jack gasped back to life. Tyra caught him before he could fall back to the ground "I think I've got just the man."

Jack's breathing calmed down as he slumped against me "Was someone kissing me?"

"Don't look at me," Tyra told him, pulling him up with her, her tone turning into teasing "As if I would ever kiss you willingly."

"I didn't see you protesting earlier," Jack pointed out, leaning on Tyra.

The Doctor grabbed Jack's arm as soon as they were upright, pulling him out of the laboratory "Stay with the Professor, Ty, Martha." And they were gone.

Tyra rolled my eyes and stretched "Well…"

"We lost the picture when that thing flared," Martha murmured, as Yana was still staring at the place Jack had woken up a few minutes ago "Doctor, are you there?"

"_Receiving, yeah,_" the Doctor answered almost immediately "_He's inside._"

Martha blinked "And still alive?"

The Doctor hummed "_Oh, yes._"

"But he should evaporate," Yana mused "What sort of a man is he?"

Martha shrugged "I've only just met him. The Doctor sort of travels through time and space and picks people up. God, I make us sound like stray dogs."

"Aren't we?" Tyra asked, sitting back down on the sofa "Also, I'm not a hundred percent sure what happened to Jack either. The Doctor never told me everything. Only that he was alive."

Yana looked from her to Martha "He travels in time?"

Martha nodded "Don't ask me to explain it." She pointed to the Tardis, still focussed on the monitor "That's a Tardis, that box thing. The sports car of time travel, he says." Tyra looked at the Professor who was staring at the Tardis with a look close to recognition in his eyes. There was no way she was going to draw attention to it though because she wasn't sure if she wanted to find out whether her suspicions were true or not.

"_When did you first realise?_" the Doctor asked, sounding further away from the monitor than before.

Jack's voice was a little more muffled but clear nevertheless "_Earth, 1892. Got in a fight in Ellis Island. A man shot me through the heart. Then I woke up. Thought it was kind of strange. But then it never stopped. Fell off a cliff, trampled by horses, World War One, World War Two, poison, starvation, a stray javelin. In the end, I got the message. I'm the man who can never die. And all that time you knew._"

"_That's why I left you behind,_" the Doctor murmured "_It's not easy even just looking at you, Jack, because you're wrong._"

"_Thanks._" The scoff in Jack's voice was obvious.

The Doctor was quiet for a moment "_You are. I can't help it. I'm a Time Lord. It's instinct. It's in my gut. You're a fixed point in time and space. You're a fact. That's never meant to happen. Even the Tardis reacted against you, tried to shake you off. Flew all the way to the end of the universe to get rid of you._"

"_So,_" Jack groaned "_What you're saying is that you're – er – prejudiced?_"

"_I never thought of it like that,_" the Doctor admitted quietly.

"_Shame on you,_" the Captain huffed "_I take it you didn't tell Tyra the truth from the way she reacted. What did you tell her?_"

The Doctor sighed "_The same thing I told Rose. That you were fine and that you stayed behind to help._"

"_And she believed that?_"

"_I think she was just glad that you weren't dead,_" the Doctor murmured "_She heard you die, Jack. Heard you being shot by that Dalek._"

Jack let out a breath "_Last thing I remember, back when I was mortal, I was facing three Daleks. Death by extermination. And then I came back to life. What happened?_"

"_Rose._"

"_I thought you'd sent her back home,_" Jack demanded, sounding slightly confused. Tyra wrapped her arms around her stomach, staring at the ground by her feet. She should have known that something was wrong with what the Doctor told her, that he wasn't telling her something. Well, she did know that but she should have kept asking… Maybe then Jack wouldn't have been left behind. Although – Then Jack wouldn't have met his Ianto, so maybe it was a good thing.

The Doctor snorted "_She came back. Opened the heart of the Tardis and absorbed the time vortex._"

"_What does that mean, exactly?_"

"_No one's ever meant to have that power,_" the Doctor explained "_If a Time Lord did that, he'd become a god. A vengeful god. But she was human. Everything she did was so human. She brought you back to life but she couldn't control it. She brought you back forever. That's something, I suppose._" He let out a long sigh "_The final act of the Time War was life._"

Jack was quiet for a moment "_Do you think she could change me back?_"

The Doctor made a negative sound "_I took the power out of her. She's gone, Jack. She's not just living on a parallel world, she's trapped there. The walls have closed."_

"_I went back to her estate,_" Jack murmured "_In the nineties, just once or twice. Watched her growing up. Never said hello. Timelines and all that. Although I met some very interesting people in New Orleans. Early twentieth century. Let's just say that Tyra is nothing like her family and leave it at that. Kol is kind of good-looking though._"

Tyra let out a groan and buried her face in her hands when Martha shot her an amused look "Oh, God," she mumbled.

"_You met Kol?_" the Doctor asked in amusement "_How did that turn out?_"

"_You don't want to know,_" Jack shook his head, the grimace obvious in his voice.

The Doctor let out a small laugh "_You slept with him, didn't you? Not that I can say that I blame you. From what I've seen Kol is right up your alley._" Jack was quiet and the amusement faded from the Doctor's voice "_Do you want to die?_"

"_Oh, this one's a little stuck,_" Jack grumbled, avoiding the topic.

"_Jack?_"

Jack swallowed "_I thought I did. I don't know. But this lot. You see them out here surviving and that's fantastic._"

"_You might be out there, somewhere,_" the Doctor pointed out. Tyra shook her head, pressing her eyes closed. At least, he hadn't been alone when he died.

"_I could go meet myself._"

The Doctor scoffed "_Only man you're ever going to be happy with._"

"_This new regeneration, it's kind of cheeky,_" Jack laughed.

"I never understand half the things he says." Martha turned away from the monitor, looking at Yana who was staring blankly "What's wrong?"

Chantho placed her hand on the man's shoulder "Chan – Professor, what is it – tho?"

"Time travel," Yana marvelled "They say there was time travel back in the old days. I never believed. But what would I know?" He fiddled with a watch that he pulled out of his pocket "Stupid old man. Never could keep time. Always late, always lost. Even this thing never worked. Time and time and time again. Always running out on me."

Martha stared at the watch with wide eyes "Can I have a look at that?"

"Oh," Yana blinked "It's only an old relic. Like me."

"Where did you get it?" she asked as Tyra got up, wandering over to them.

Yana shrugged "I was found with it. An orphan in the storm. I was a naked child found on the coast of the Silver Devastation. Abandoned, with only this."

"Have you opened it?" Martha questioned.

Tyra sent her a sharp look, tinged with panic "Martha, don't."

"Why would I?" the Professor questioned "It's broken."

"How do you know it's broken if you've never opened it?"

Tyra grabbed her arm "Martha, I'm serious. Don't."

Just then, Martha turned the watch over and saw the inscription. Tyra cursed internally. So much for not wanting to find out about her suspicions. Martha swallowed "I – Erm… I'm going to see if the Doctor needs me. Ty?"

"I'll stay here," she told her quietly, seeing that Yana was staring at the watch in his hands. This was bad. She really hoped that he wasn't the Master but something told me that she was right.

Chantho studied the older man in concern "Chan – Yana, won't you please take some rest – tho?"

Tyra stepped forward nervously "Maybe you should sit down," she cut in when his thumb was on the trigger "Please?"

"Chan – Professor Yana – tho?"

Something fell, causing her to whirl in that direction for a moment. That was all Yana needed to press the button and the change was instant. It might not be obvious in the body but the man's eyes changed, showing the same age that the Doctor's and Tyra's did "Crap," she mumbled, taking a step back.

The man ignored her and moved a lever, causing the control room door to slam shut. Chantho let out a startled gasp "Chan – but you've locked them in – tho."

"Not to worry, my dear," Yana murmured "As one door closes, another must open." He turned off another switch that I couldn't recognise from where I was standing.

Chantho moved forward urgently "Chan – you must stop – tho. Chan – but you've lowered the defences. The Futurekind will get in – tho."

"Chantho, maybe you should come over here," Tyra murmured, watching the old man warily.

She shook her head, grabbing a gun from somewhere, pointing it at the man who had his back turned towards us "Chan – Professor, I'm so sorry but I must stop you. You're destroying all our work – tho."

Yana turned, raising his eyebrow at the gun "Oh. Now I can say I was provoked." He took a hold of one of the live cables from earlier "Did you never think, all those years standing beside me, to ask about that watch? Never? Did you never once think, not ever, that you could set me free?" His gaze turned towards Tyra "And you suspected this whole time, didn't you? What made you suspicious, hm?"

"Chan – I'm sorry – tho. Chan – I'm so sorry…"

"You," Yana sneered "With your 'Chan' and your 'tho' driving me insane."

Tyra snorted "A bit late for that, isn't it, Master?" She watched his face closely as she said that name.

"So, you do know," the Master nodded to himself, his eyes narrowing on Tyra "How? Who are you?"

"Chan – Professor, please…" Chantho pleaded.

The Master whirled to her "That is not my name," he spat "The Professor was an invention. So perfect a disguise that I forgot who I am."

Chantho shrank back slightly "Chan – then who are you – tho?"

"I am the Master." He thrust the live end of the cable at Chantho, not counting on Tyra getting in the way. She grimaced at the electricity flowing through her and fell to her knees, blacking out for a moment.

When she woke up again, Tyra groaned in pain, earning a surprised look from the Master who was just pulling the cable out of the Tardis "What are you?"

"Wouldn't you like to know," Tyra baited, hearing the Doctor just outside of the door.

The Master stalked over to her, turning her with his foot "He told you about me, didn't he? The Doctor and his human girls…" He smirked down "Although… Not so human."

"_Just open the door, please_." Tyra heard movement to me right and turned to see Chantho lifting the gun, shooting the Master in the stomach. He stumbled away from her as the bug girl slumped, dead. Tyra flinched when a smashing sound came from the door. The Doctor came rushing in just as the Tardis door shut behind the Master.

"_Deadlocked,_" the Master crowed out in victory as the Doctor tried to open his ship.

"Let me in," the Doctor pleaded "Let me in."

Martha had knelt down next to Chantho "She's dead." With that, she walked over to Tyra "Are you alright?"

Tyra nodded "Fine. Just help me up."

"I broke to lock," Jack huffed from the door "Give me a hand." Martha helped Tyra up as they walked over. Tyra grimaced as the electricity burn on her chest was healing, leaning against the door, holding it shut more or less easily.

The Doctor hit his hand against the door "I'm begging you. Everything's changed. It's only the two of us. We're the only ones left. Just let me in."

"_Killed by an insect,_" the Master cursed inside the Tardis "_A girl. How inappropriate. Still, if the Doctor can be young and strong, then so can I. The Master reborn._" The Doctor stumbled back as a golden glow shone through the Tardis window "_Ha, ha. Ha, ha, ha. Oh. Now then, Doctor._" The man paused "_Ooo, new voice. Hello, hello. Hello._" Tyra rolled her eyes as the other Time Lord was playing around with his voice, making it sound higher and lower "_Anyway, why don't we stop and have a nice little chat while I tell you all my plans and you can work out a way to stop me. I don't think._"

Martha gasped, letting go of the door "Hold on. I know that voice."

"I'm asking you really properly. Just stop," the Doctor called out "Just think."

"_Use my name,_" the Master demanded "_Your little pet already figured it out._"

The Doctor looked at Tyra and she shrugged "Yeah, she's smart like that. Master, I'm sorry."

"_Tough._" The Master started up the time rotor as the Doctor stepped back some more, activating his sonic "_Oh, no, you don't. End of the universe. Have fun. Bye, bye._"

"Doctor, stop him," the medical student shouted over the sound of the Tardis dematerialising. There was nothing the Doctor could do. Nothing but to watch the other Time Lord disappearing right in front of him.


	27. Sound of Drums

Tyra was still leaning against the door, keeping it shut with Jack's help. More and more Futurekind tried to get the door open but so far they had been able to keep it closed. The Doctor grabbed Jack's arm, using the sonic on the Captain's vortex manipulator "Hold still," he huffed "Don't move. Hold it still."

"I'm telling you, it's broken," Jack argued "It hasn't worked for years."

"That's because you didn't have me," the Doctor shot back "Martha, Ty, grab hold, now." With all of them holding onto the manipulator, they vanished.

Tyra gritted her teeth against the feeling of the Time Vortex burning against her skin a little before she fell to the ground. Martha held onto a wall, holding her head tightly "Oh, my head."

The Doctor cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders "Time travel without a capsule. That's a killer."

"Are you alright, Ty?" Jack asked with an amused grin on his face.

"I was leaning against the door," she huffed, climbing to her feet "There wasn't much I could do but fall."

Jack nodded, wrapping his arm around her shoulders, walking out of the alley "Still, at least we made it. Earth, twenty-first century by the looks of it. Talk about lucky."

"That wasn't luck," the Time Lord pointed out quietly, looking around "That was me."

"The moral is," the Captain spoke up, rolling his eyes at the Doctor "If you're going to get stuck at the end of the universe, get stuck with an ex-Time Agent and his vortex manipulator.

Martha turned to the Doctor "But this Master bloke, he's got the Tardis. He could be anywhere in time and space."

"No," the Doctor denied "He's here. Trust me."

"Who is he, anyway? And that voice at the end, that wasn't the Professor," Martha questioned.

Jack raised his eyebrow "If the Master's a Time Lord, then he must have regenerated."

"What does that mean?"

"You two haven't explained it to her yet?" Jack frowned "Anyway… It means that he's changed his face, voice, body, everything. New man." Tyra glanced to the side where a beggar was tapping a coin against his mug in slight annoyance. For some reason, that noise really bothered her.

Martha tugged a strand of hair behind her ear "Then how are we going to find him?"

"I'll know him," the Doctor said "The moment I see him. Time Lords always do."

"But hold on," Martha froze "If he could be anyone, we missed the election…" Her eyes widened in realization "But it can't be."

A series of public television screen on several lamp posts in front of us were broadcasting the news "_Mister Saxon has returned from the Palace and is greeting the crowd inside Saxon Headquarters._" Tyra raised my eyebrow at the familiar man walking down the steps with a woman holding onto his arm.

"I said I knew the voice," Martha breathed "When he spoke inside the Tardis… I've heard that voice hundreds of times. I've seen him. We all have. That was the voice of Harold Saxon."

The Doctor stared at the screen without blinking "That's him," he pointed out quietly "He's Prime Minister." As a photographer on the screen begged the couple for a kiss, the Doctor blinked in shock "The Master is Prime Minister of Great Britain. The Master and his wife?"

"Wait," Tyra cut in, jabbing her finger at the screen "Are you absolutely sure that he's the Master?"

"Yes," the Time Lord nodded, frowning at her in confusion "Why?"

Tyra bit her lip, a little unsure of what she was about to say "Because I met him before."

The other three stopped and stared at her in surprise "When? How? You were with me the whole time, weren't you?" the Doctor questioned.

"That day," Tyra started "At the Lazarus Laboratories. You two ran off to get Tish and I was talking to your mother." She nodded to Martha "Trying to get her to calm down a little. He came up to us."

"He was talking to my mother?" Martha questioned, panic and a hint of anger swinging in her voice "How come you didn't hear his hearts?"

Tyra stepped back a little, surprised at her tone "Because we were in a room full of people and I honestly didn't pay attention to any heartbeats."

"Martha," the Doctor warned, shooting Martha a look to tell her to calm down. He tilted Tyra's head up "Tell me everything, Ty."

"There wasn't much," she shrugged "It just seemed like he knew me somehow. Like he knew everything. He felt wrong somehow but I didn't have enough time to think about it since the two of you were coming back. The only thing I was told was that he was called Mr Saxon and was running for Prime Minister. The whole meeting thing seemed to amuse him to no end though."

The Doctor ran his hand through his hair "This is bad…"

"That means he definitely arrived before us," Jack pointed out.

"It seems that way," the Doctor nodded "Even if the Master was always adept at… messing with people. Something of this scale needs time."

I glanced at him "He has the Tardis. Wouldn't that mean that he had enough time?"

"I don't know," the Doctor sighed "I really don't."

"Come on," Martha waved "We can talk about this at mine."

All of a sudden, Tyra's phone beeped and she frowned. Not many people would text her apart from emergencies. She pulled it out and blinked.

"What's going on?" Jack frowned, looking over my shoulder.

"One of the… my friends here in London needs something from me," she explained, fingers flying over the keyboard on the screen. The Doctor grabbed Tyra's wrist to stop her from sending the message she had just written "I'll just tell them to contact the main group."

The Doctor nodded "Good. Come on. Let's get out of the streets." He glanced at the screen again that had switched from the Master back to the newscaster.

* * *

It didn't take them long to reach Martha's building. Martha let out a long sigh when she stepped into her apartment "Home."

"What have you got?" the Doctor asked, looking around "Computer, laptop, anything?" He noticed Jack pressing his phone to his ear "Jack, who are you phoning? You can't tell anyone we're here."

"Just some friends of mine," the Captain shook his head "But there's no reply."

Martha quickly grabbed her laptop and walked over to the Doctor "Here you go. Any good?"

Jack grabbed it from her "I can show you the Saxon websites. He's been around for ages."

"That's so weird though," Martha remarked, looking at the date that was showing on screen "It's the day after the election. That's only four days after I met you."

"Fascinating how time passes when you travel through time, isn't it?" Tyra asked, perching herself on the armrest next to Jack.

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair "We went flying all around the universe while he was here all the time."

"You doing to tell us who he is?" Martha asked, raising her eyebrows.

"He's a Time Lord," the Doctor gestured, not expanding on the fact.

Martha rolled her eyes "What about the rest of it? I mean, who'd call himself the Master?"

"That's all you need to know," the Doctor pointed out, shaking his head at Tyra when she was about to open her mouth. He turned his attention to Jack while Martha wandered off to her blinking answering machine "Come on, show me Harold Saxon."

"_Martha, where are you?" _Tish's voice sounded through the speakers "_I've got this new job. You won't believe it. It's weird. They just phoned me out of the blue. I'm working for…_"

Her voice cut off abruptly when Martha switched the machine back off "Oh like it matters."

Next to Tyra, Jack clicked on the video that was the first thing that popped up on the page "_I'm voting Saxon,_" Sharon Osbourne smiled on the laptop. Tyra shuddered. For some reason, she couldn't stand that woman. Maybe it was because of those whole talent shows but she really didn't care for her "_He can tick my box any day._"

"_Vote Saxon,_" a group of guys called out "_Go Harry._"

Another woman came onto the screen and Tyra vaguely recognized her but she really couldn't remember her name or what she was doing for work. Behind her was the Master smiling down at her "_I think Mister Saxon is exactly what this country needs. He's a very fine man._" She looked up at him for a moment "_And he's handsome too._"

"Former Minister of Defence," Jack explained when the video ended "First came to prominence when he shot down the Racnoss on Christmas Eve." The Captain grinned "Nice work, by the way."

Tyra snorted "Yeah, draining the Thames was such a brilliant plan."

"Hey," the Doctor huffed "It's not like that was part of the plan."

"It never is," Tyra shook her head "But somehow stuff like that still happens to you."

Martha let out a noise "But he goes back years," she pointed out "He's famous. Everyone knows his story. Look. Cambridge University, Rugby blue. Won the Athletics thing. Wrote a novel, went into business, marriage, everything. He's got a whole life."

The Doctor shook his head, scrolling through the information as Jack got up to make some tea "Do you want some too, Ty?"

"Nah, I'm good," she denied, leaning back against the backrest with her legs curled beneath her.

Jack nodded and continued to prepare three mugs "He's got the Tardis, right? Maybe he went back in time and has been living here for decades."

"No," the Doctor shook his head.

Jack shot him a look "Why not? Worked for me."

The Doctor licked his lips, accepting the tea with a thankful nod "When he was stealing the Tardis, the only thing I could do was fuse the coordinates. I locked them permanently. He can only travel between the year one hundred trillion and the last place the Tardis landed. Which is right here, right now."

"Yeah, but a little leeway?"

"Well," the Doctor muttered "Eighteen months, tops. The most he could have been here is eighteen months. So how has he managed all this?" He clenched his jaw, coming back to what we had talked about earlier "The Master was always sort of hypnotic but this is on a massive scale."

Martha's gaze was glued to the wall "I was going to vote for him."

"Really?" the Doctor blinked.

"Well," she shrugged "It was before I met you. And I liked him."

Jack nodded "Me too."

"Why do you say that? What was his policy? What did he stand for?" the Time Lord questioned, looking from Jack to Martha.

Martha blinked, her fingers starting to tap on the mug in the same rhythm the homeless man had tapped earlier "I don't know. He always sounded good. Like… You could trust him. Just nice. He spoke about…" She wrinkled her forehead "I can't really remember but it was good. Just the sound of his voice."

Tyra glanced at her hand "Okay, can you stop?"

"Stop what?" Martha asked, turning her head towards her as the tapping stopping instantly.

"You were tapping," the Doctor pointed out "That rhythm. Why are you doing that?"

Martha shook her head "I don't know. It's nothing. It's just, I don't know."

Tyra jumped in surprise when a fanfare blared out from the laptop and a pop up advertised a Saxon Broadcast on all channels. The Doctor hurried to grab the remote "Our lord and master is speaking to his kingdom."

"_Britain, Britain, Britain,_" the Master tutted "_What extraordinary times we've had. Just a few years ago, this world was so small. And then they came, out of the unknown, falling from the skies. You've seen it happen._" Clips from the past showed, the spaceship crashing into Big Ben, Torchwood One and the events at Christmas "_Big Ben destroyed. A spaceship over London. All those ghosts and metal men. The Christmas star that came to kill. Time and time again and the government told you nothing._"

"What is he doing?" Tyra frowned.

"Shh," the Doctor hissed, his eyes glued to the TV.

"_Well, not me,_" the Master continued "_Not Harold Saxon. Because my purpose here today is to tell you this. Citizens of Great Britain, I have been contacted. A message for humanity from beyond the stars._"

The picture flickered and a metal sphere appeared "_People of the Earth,_" a childish female voice started "_We come in peace. We bring great gifts. We bring technology and wisdom and protection. And all we ask in return is your friendship._"

The Master came back on screen, pulling what was probably supposed to be a cute expression "_Ooh, sweet. And this species has identified itself. They are called the Toclafane._"

"What?" The Doctor pushed himself to his feet as quickly as he could, his face set in confusion.

"_And tomorrow morning, they will appear. Not in secret but to all of you. Diplomatic relations with a new species will begin. Tomorrow, we take out place in the universe,_" the Master explained, his eyes fixed on the camera as if he was trying to stare through it at us "_Every man, woman and child. Every teacher and chemist and lorry driver and farmer. Oh, I don't know, every medical student?_"

The Doctor turns to look at Martha, then hurried to turn the TV around, revealing several sticks of explosives strapped to the back "Out," he snapped, grabbing the laptop and my hand on the way out. As soon as the four of them were outside, the first floor exploded with a massive fireball "Alright?"

"Fine, yeah, fine," Jack gasped, staring up at the smoking building.

The Doctor turned to Martha when she didn't say anything "Martha? What are you doing?"

"He knows about me," Martha muttered, her phone in hand "What about my family? Tyra said that he already talked to my mum. What if…?"

"Don't tell them anything," the Doctor warned when she raised her phone to her ear.

She glared at him "I'll do what I like. Mum? Oh my God. You're there."

"_Of course, I'm here, sweetheart,_" Francine's voice sounded on the other end of the line.

Tyra shook her head and walked over to Jack, drawing him into a quiet conversation. She really didn't want to listen to Martha's private conversations.

When Martha's voice changed to scared, Tyra looked over at her. She was clutching her mobile in her hand, her knuckles already turning white "Dad?" she started, her voice trembling "Just say yes or no. Is there someone else there?"

"_Yes,_" Martha's father shouted on the other end of the line "_Just run._"

There was shuffling coming from the phone before Martha's mum called out "_Clive._"

"_Listen to me,_" Martha's dad shouted "_Just run. I don't know who they are._"

"_We're trying to help her,_" Francine argued quietly "_Martha, don't listen to him._"

Martha ignored her mother's words "Dad?" she shouted "What's going on? Dad?" She stared down at her phone when the dial tone sounded "We have got to help them."

"That's exactly what they want. It's a trap," the Doctor sighed, obviously feeling bad for just saying it.

"I don't care," Martha hissed, stalking off to her car. The Doctor, Jack and Tyra exchanged glances before climbing into the car with her.

Martha sped down the road, narrowly avoiding oncoming traffic while overtaking the people that were too slow for her.

In the front seat, the Doctor was practically hugging the door handle "Corner," he exclaimed.

"Come on, Tish," Martha muttered, glancing from the road to her phone back "Pick up."

It took a moment before her sister picked up "_Martha, I can't talk right now,_" Tish sighed on the other end of the line "_We just made first contact. Did you see?_" There was a moment of silence before Tish gasped "_What are you doing? Get off! Linda, tell them…_"

"What's happening?" Martha questioned worriedly "Tish!" When the line disconnected again, she whirled to glare at the Doctor "It's your fault. It's all your fault."

When they sped around another corner, we could see several policemen trying to get Martha's mother into the police van where a man was already sitting. The Doctor inhaled sharply when they all seemed to turn to face them "Martha," he hissed "Reverse." The men aimed and the Doctor grabbed a hold of the Martha's shoulder "Get out, now."

Martha turned just as bullets slammed into the rear window. Jack and Tyra ducked sharply to avoid being hit by bullets and glass alike "Move it," Jack snapped.

"The only place we can go planet Earth," Martha said through gritted teeth "Great."

"Careful," the Doctor yelped when Martha swerved dangerously. Tyra was biting my lip, unsure of what to say or do. On one hand, she wanted to make sure that Martha was feeling better but considering the circumstances, she thought it was safer to keep quiet.

Jack leaned forward "Martha," he started, his voice low "Listen to me. Do as I say. We've got to ditch this car. Pull over. Right now."

* * *

A few minutes later, they were out of the car and standing at the end of an underpass, out of view from just about everyone and everything "Martha," the Doctor called from further down "Come on."

It had just started to rain as Martha made yet another phone call. Well, one thing Tyra was really happy about was that she didn't have to be worried about her family. They could take care of themselves "Leo," Martha sighed, her shoulders dropping in relief "Oh, thank God. Leo, you got to listen to me. Where are you?"

"_I'm in Brighton,_" Tyra heard him say "_Yeah, we came down with Boxer. Did you see that Saxon thing on telly?_"

"Leo," Martha cut him off "Just listen to me. Don't go home. I'm telling you. Don't phone Mum or Dad or Tish. You've got to hide."

"This is a mess," she muttered, coming to stand next to the Doctor.

He ran a hand through his hair "This shouldn't have happened," he muttered, leaning his forehead to rest against Tyra's.

"Nothing you can do about it now," she shrugged and pressed a quick kiss to his lips before stepping back.

Jack nodded in agreement "This isn't your fault. You didn't ask for the Master to go after Martha's family."

"But if not for me, Martha wouldn't have been…"

"Stop," Tyra interrupted "Just… Stop, okay? You're not helping anyone with your misplaced guilt."

Tyra's head snapped up when Martha's voice got louder "Let them go, Saxon. Do you hear me." The Doctor moved forward quickly "Let them go."

"I'm here," he murmured, taking the phone from Martha.

"_Doctor,_" the Master whispered.

The Doctor clenched his jaw for a moment "Master."

"_I like it when you use my name,_" the Master said. Tyra grimaced in discomfort.

"You chose it," the Doctor reminded "Psychiatrist's field day._"_

The Master snorted "_As you chose yours. The man who makes people better. How sanctimonious is that?_"

"You're one to talk," Tyra scoffed quietly, shaking her head at Jack and Martha's questioning looks "They're talking about their chosen names."

"So…" the Doctor drew out "Prime Minister, then."

"_I know,_" the Master gave back smugly "_It's good, isn't it?_"

The Doctor rolled his eyes, shooting Tyra a look before walking a little further away from them "Who are those creatures? Because there's no such thing as the Toclafane. It's just a made-up name, like the Bogeyman."

Tyra tilted her head, trying to hear what the Master's response was. She groaned "Damn. I guess that was it, then."

"What's going on?" Jack asked.

"I can't hear the Master anymore," Tyra explained with a small huff.

Martha ran a hand through her hair and started pacing "It's all his fault."

"Is it, though?" she asked, looking at her intently.

"If I hadn't met you…"

Tyra closed her eyes "True. But you forget that it was your choice to come along. I get that you think it's the Doctor's fault but… This is on the Master. And only on him."

Martha deflated "I know that. But I can't help but think…"

"I get it," Tyra told her "But be honest with yourself. Would you have given all this up if you had known that this would happen?"

"No," Martha whispered "I would have made sure that my family was safe but I wouldn't have told you to leave without me."

Tyra wrapped her arm around Martha's shoulders, steering her towards the pacing Doctor "You see? It doesn't make the situation better but… Well, we can try to get this resolved somehow."

"What have you done?" the Doctor exclaimed, his grip on the phone tightening as he looked at all the people around them who started tapping the same beat Martha had earlier "Tell me how you've done this. What are those creatures? Tell me!"

"_Ooh,_" the Master cooed playfully "_Look. You're on TV._"

They came to a stop in front of a window front that held a couple of TVs, all showing the same thing. Them. Well, them on the news "Stop it," the Doctor huffed "Answer me."

"_No, really. You're on telly. You and your little band, which, by the way, is ticking every demographic box. So, congratulations on that. Look, there you are._"

As the Master trailed off, the newscaster could be heard speaking through the glass "_Knowns as the Captain. They are known to be armed and extremely dangerous._"

The Master laughed "_You're public enemies number one, two, three and four. Oh, and you can tell handsome Jack that I've sent his little gang off on aa wild goose chase to the Himalayas, so he won't be getting any help from them._" Both the Doctor and Tyra looked at Jack who returned their looks with confusion "_Now, go on, off you go. Why not start by turning to the… right?_"

Tyra immediately noticed the CCTV camera "Over there," she murmured, pointing at it.

"He can see us," the Doctor said, zapping the CCTV with his sonic.

"_Oh, you public menace,_" the Master chided "_Better start running. You and your… pets. Go on, run._"

The Doctor lowered his phone "He's got control of everything."

"What do we do?" Martha whispered, looking around.

Jack licked his lips and shook his head "We've got nowhere to go."

Martha was still looking at the Doctor who was standing there, shell-shocked "Doctor, what do we do?"

"_Run, Doctor,_" the Master yelled "_Run for your life._"

Tyra wasn't sure whether the Doctor actually heard the Master but he sighed, hanging up the phone "We run."

* * *

It took a while but soon they found an abandoned warehouse that had been empty long enough for there to not be any cameras around at all. They all tried to relax for a little while before things would inadvertently go to hell.

"How was it?" Jack asked when Martha returned with a bag of takeaway about thirty minutes after she had left.

She set the bag down "I don't think anyone saw me. Anything new?"

Jack tapped his Vortex Manipulator "I've got this turned to government wavelengths so we can follow what Saxon's doing."

"Yeah," Martha rolled her eyes "I meant about my family."

"It still says the Jones family was taken in for questioning," the Doctor replied, looking up from the laptop. When Martha's face fell, he quickly added "Tell you what, though. No mention of Leo."

A small smile stole its way across her face "He's not as daft as he looks." She shook her head in wonder "I'm talking about my brother on the run. How did this happen?"

"Nice chips," Jack murmured, shoving one of the fries into his mouth, effectively changing the subject.

"Actually, they're not bad," the Doctor nodded, holding out his bag to Tyra. She hadn't really been hungry, so she didn't have a portion of my own. Instead of taking one, she plopped down onto the floor next to the Doctor, leaning her head against his thigh.

The Captain tilted his head "So, Doctor, who is he? How come the ancient society of Time Lords created a psychopath?"

"And what is he to you?" Martha added "Like a colleague or…"

"A friend," the Doctor finished for her "At first."

Martha let out a breath "I thought you were going to say he was your secret brother or something."

"You've been watching too much TV," the Doctor shook his head.

"But all the legends of Gallifrey made it sound so perfect," Jack whispered.

The Doctor leaned his head back, while Tyra got more comfortable, closing her eyes "Well," he started and cleared his throat "Perfect to look at, maybe. And it was. It was beautiful." The hand he hadn't been eating with dropped down to play with a few strands of Tyra's hair absentmindedly "They used to call it the Shining World of the Seven Systems. And on the Continent of Wild Endeavour, in the Mountains of Solace and Solitude, there stood the Citadel of the Time Lords, the oldest and most mighty race in the universe, looking down on the galaxies below. Sworn never to interfere, only to watch." The Doctor paused for a moment, letting the words sink in as he tried to gather his thoughts. Tyra blinked a couple of times before closing her eyes again, letting the familiar story wash over her "Children of Gallifrey, taken from their families at the age of eight to enter the Academy. And some say that's when it all began. When he was a child. That's when the Master saw eternity. As a novice, he was taken for initiation. He stood in front of the Untempered Schism. It's a gap in the fabric of reality through which could be seen the whole of the vortex. You stand there, eight years old, staring at the raw power of time and space, just a child. Some would be inspired, some would run away and some would go mad. I don't know…"

"What about you?" Martha asked curiously.

"Oh, the ones that ran away," he shrugged "I never stopped."

At that moment, Jack's bracelet beeped, starling all of them "Encrypted channel with files attached," he mumbled "Don't recognise it…"

The Doctor straightened up, throwing the bag his fries had been in away. Tyra let out a noise of protest until he went back to playing with her hair "Patch it through to the laptop."

"Since we're telling stories," Jack grimaced sheepishly "There's something I haven't told you." As he said that, the Torchwood logo appeared on the screen of the laptop.

"You work for Torchwood," the Doctor realized, his expression darkening.

Jack swallowed nervously, looking up at the man pleadingly "I swear to you, it's different. It's changed. There's only half a dozen of us now."

"Everything Torchwood did," the Doctor ranted quietly "And you're part of it?"

Tyra placed her hand on his arm "Doctor, you know Jack. Do you really think he would have been part of that? Hell, he should know better than to mess with something like that. I trust that he had nothing to do with it… You should too."

The Captain smiled at Tyra "The old regime was destroyed at Canary Wharf. I rebuilt it, I changed it and when I did that, I did it for you. In your honour."

The Doctor was silent before simply hitting the play button without another word. A woman popped up, recording herself on a webcam "_If I haven't returned to my desk by twenty-two hundred, this file will be emailed to Torchwood. Which means if you're watching this, then I'm…_" She trailed off, shaking her head dismissively "_Anyway, the Saxon files are attached. But take a look at the Archangel document. That's when it all started. When Harry Saxon became Minister in charge of launching the Archangel Network._"

"What's the Archangel Network?" the Doctor blinked in confusion.

"I've got Archangel," Martha pointed out, gesturing to her phone. Everyone's got it."

Jack hummed "It's a mobile phone network. Because look, it's gone worldwide." A simulation showed on the screen "They've got fifteen satellites in orbit. Even the other networks, they're all carried by Archangel."

The Doctor hit his head in something akin to realization "It's in the phone," he exclaimed, grabbing Martha's phone "Oh, I said he was a hypnotist. Wait, wait, wait. Hold on." He sonicked the phone, placing it on the table when it started beating. A four-beat rhythm echoed through the warehouse "There it is. That rhythm, it's everywhere, ticking away in the subconsciousness."

"What is it, mind control?" Martha asked, staring down at her phone with wide eyes.

The Doctor shook his head "No, no, no, no, no. It's subtler than that. Any stronger and people would question it. But contained in that rhythm, in layers of code." He closed his eyes for a moment "Vote Saxon. Believe in me. Whispering to the world. Oh, yes. That's how he hid himself from me, because I should have sensed there was another Time Lord on Earth. I should have known way back. The signal cancelled him out."

Tyra frowned "Does that mean that he arrived on Earth while we were most likely somewhere else… And launched the Network before we got back to Earth? That must have been really, really good timing though."

"Incredibly good," the Doctor nodded.

"Wait, eighteen months… That would have been. Around Christmas? Where you regenerated, no?" Tyra quickly did the Math and shivered.

Jack tilted his head "That would fit. Archangels went up at the beginning of 2007, not quite a month after the Sycorax came here."

"Considering how out of it you were, I wouldn't have been surprised if you just didn't notice him," Tyra told the Doctor.

"Is there any way you can stop it?" Jack asked, gesturing to the screen.

The Doctor shook his head "Not from down here. But now we know how he's going it."

"And we can fight back," Martha pointed out.

"Oh, yes," the Doctor grinned. He bent over the phone "I need your keys for this…" The three of them handed him the keys, watching as he welded parts of the laptop and phone to the Tardis keys with his sonic.

After half an hour, he nodded in satisfaction "Four Tardis keys," he explained, gesturing to the table "Four pieces of the Tardis, all with low-level perception properties because the Tardis is designed to blend in." He grimaced "Well, sort of. But now, the Archangel Network's got a second low-level signal. Weld the key to the network and… Martha, look at me. You can see me, yes?"

Martha raised her eyebrow "Yes?"

The Doctor grabbed one of the keys and put the string around his neck "How about now?" When Martha's eyes trailed past him, he waved his arms "No, I'm here. Look at me."

"It's like I know you're there but I don't want to know," Martha murmured uncomfortably, pressing her fingers over her eyes "It's making me dizzy."

The Doctor took off the key "And back again. See? It just shifts your perception a tiny little bit. Doesn't make us invisible, just unnoticed."

"So… instead of being magic, you managed to get a similar result using science?" Tyra murmured "That's… Kinda cool."

"Isn't it just?" the Doctor questioned excitedly "Come on." We all grabbed a key and hurried after him "Don't run," he explained, walking down a road "Don't shout. Just keep your voice down. Draw attention to yourself and the spell is broken. Just keep to the shadows."

Jack nodded grimly "Like ghosts."

"Yeah," the Doctor mumbled "That's what we are. Ghosts."

They stopped at a storefront that held a TV and stepped to the side, letting some people walk past without running into them "_And as the eyes of the world turn towards Great Britain, sources indicate that Air Force One has landed on British soil tonight,_" the news guy explained, making the Doctor startle.

"Come on. I think I know where we'll find the Master," he told the other three before walking off.

The four of them reached the airport at the same time as the Prime Minister's car came to a stop. They ducked behind a couple of crates and watch as the President walked up to the Master who was saluting the man mockingly "Mister President, sir."

"Mister Saxon," the President greeted coldly "The British Army will stand down. From now on, UNIT has control of this operation."

"You make it sound like an invasion," the Master raised his eyebrows, amusement hidden in his eyes.

President Winters gritted his teeth "First Contact policy was decided by the Security Council in 1969 and you've just gone and ignored it."

The Master shrugged "Well, you know what it's like. New job, all that paperwork. I think it's down the back of the settee. I did have a quick look. I found a pen, a sweet, a bus ticket and…" He trailed off when he noticed that the President was steaming. Tyra couldn't quite hold back the snort of amusement. Maybe if he had been someone else, the two of them could have gotten along great "Have you met the wife?"

"Mister Saxon, I'm not sure what your game is but there are provisions at the United Nations to have you removed from office unless you are very, very careful," Winters pointed out, crossing his arms "Is that understood?" The Master zipped up his lips and threw the invisible key away "Are you taking this seriously?" Saxon nodded, his face set.

Tyra suppressed the small laugh that wanted to escape me "Well," she whispered "He certainly likes pissing people off."

"To business," Winters sighed "We've accessed your files on these… Toclafane. First Contact cannot take place on any sovereign soil. To that purpose, the aircraft carried Valiant is en route. The rendezvous will take place there at eight am." When the Master just gave a thumbs up, Winters sighed "You're trying my patience, sir."

The Master unzipped his lips "So America is completely in charge?"

"Since Britain elected an ass, yes," the President nodded "I'll see you onboard the Valiant." With that, he stormed past the other Time Lord but stopped when he spoke up.

"It sill will be televised, though, won't it?" the Master asked, turning around "Because I promised and the whole world is watching."

Winters closed his eyes for a moment "Since it's too late to pull out, the world will be watching. Me."

The Master stared after him, his arms wrapped around his wife's waist "The last President of America." He nodded to the plane next to them "We have a private plane ready and waiting. We should reach the Valiant within the hour." As his wife left with her security guard, the Master turned towards the group hidden behind the grates, looking in their general direction.

"Are you sure he can't see us?" Tyra breathed, shifting a little to get more comfortable.

The Doctor shrugged "We can only hope so. He shouldn't be able to…"

"Shouldn't and can't are two very different things," she pointed out.

Martha startled and would have lurched forward if Jack and Tyra hadn't grabbed a hold of her as a police van arrived. Her parents were bundled out and met by the – too – excited Master "Ha ha ha. Hi, guys."

"You can't just do this," Martha's father exclaimed, fighting against the hands that were holding him.

"All will be revealed," the Master waved off.

Martha shuddered "Oh, my God. I'm going to kill him."

Jack grunted in agreement "What day I use this perception filter to walk up behind him and break his neck?"

"Now, that sounds like Torchwood," the Doctor huffed.

The Captain shrugged unapologetically "Still a good plan."

"He's a Time Lord," the Doctor pointed out "Which makes him my responsibility. I'm not here to kill him. I'm here to save him."

"How often have you tried that, though," Tyra asked him "Do you really think he wants to be saved?"

"I have to try."

Jack sighed and messed with his Vortex Manipulator "Aircraft carrier Valiant. It's a UNIT ship at fifty-eight point two north, ten-point oh two east."

Martha looked over at them "How do we get on board?"

"Does that thing work as a teleport?" the Doctor asked, nodding to the wrist strap.

Jack nodded "Since you revamped it, yeah." He pressed a few buttons "Coordinates set." They all grabbed a hold of Jack's wrist as the world blurred around them again.

"Oh, that thing is rough," Martha groaned, holding her head in pain. Tyra just cracked her neck. This wasn't nearly as bad as the first time. How Jack managed to do this more than necessary though, she'll never understand. Twice was more than enough for her.

Jack shrugged "I've had worse nights. Welcome to the Valiant."

"It's dawn," Martha blinked "Hold on, I thought this was a ship. Where's the sea?"

Jack smirked "A ship for the twenty-first century, protecting the skies of planet Earth."

The Doctor grabbed Tyra's hand and started pulling her in some direction "Come on."

"Do you even know where you're going?" Tyra questioned, easily keeping up with him.

"Yes," he nodded, suddenly stopping mid-run.

Jack almost bumped into them "We've got no time for sightseeing," he pointed out, sounding annoyed with the Doctor.

"No, wait," the Doctor murmured, looking around "Shush, shush, shush, shush. Can't you hear it?"

"Hear what?" Jack frowned, catching Tyra's confused look.

Tyra stiffened "Is that what I think it is?" A pained hum, almost like a scream cut through her head, overshadowing even the noises of the ship. Her hand shot out, clenching around Jack's arm tightly enough to hurt the man.

"Valkyrie?" the Captain blinked but she just shook her head, not looking away from the Doctor.

Martha rolled her eyes "Doctor, my family's on board."

"Brilliant," the Doctor exclaimed, obviously not talking about what Martha had just said. Tyra wasn't even sure whether he heard… but if he thought that the pain she was feeling was brilliant, she would have to talk to him about his definition of the word "This way."

They ran down a gangway and through a door at the end "Oh, at last." The Doctor grinned, reaching out for the familiar blue wood of the Tardis.

"What's it doing on the Valiant?" Jack asked, walking inside the blue box after the Doctor. The inside looked very different from normal. For one, the whole room was filled with a sickly red hue "What the hell has he done?"

"Don't touch it," the Doctor warned.

The Captain threw him a look "I'm not going to."

"What happened to her?" Tyra asked, glancing up at the console uncomfortably. Something was obviously wrong with the Tardis and she couldn't quite describe it but it hurt.

"He cannibalised the Tardis," the Doctor stated grimly.

Jack inhaled sharply "Is this what I think it is?"

"A paradox machine," he nodded as an answer. He tapped a gauge on the metal mesh around the time console "As soon as this hits red, it activates. At this speed, it'll trigger at two minutes past eight."

"First contact is at eight," Jack pointed out "Then two minutes later…"

Martha tilted her head "What's it for? What does a paradox machine do?"

"Probably does what it says on the tin," Tyra murmured at the same time as Jack asked the Doctor whether he could stop it.

The Doctor shook his head "Not till I know what it's doing. Touch the wrong bit, blow up the solar system."

"Then we've got to get to the Master," Martha pointed out.

"Yeah," Jack nodded patronizingly "How are we going to stop him?"

That's when the Doctor perked up "Oh, I've got a way. Sorry, didn't I mention it?"

"You tend to forget to mention a lot of things," Tyra sighed, once again following him out of the Tardis and towards the sound of people.

Even from outside the room, she could hear the President's voice "My fellow Americans, patriots, people of the world. I stand before you today as ambassador for humanity, a role I will undertake with the utmost solemnity. Perhaps out Toclafane cousins can offer us much but what is important is not that we gain material benefits but that we learn to see ourselves anew." Tyra entered the flight deck of the Valiant together with the Doctor, Jack and Martha while the president was talking "For as long as man has looked at the stars, he has wondered what mysteries they hold. Now we know we are not alone…"

Jack leaned around me to talk to the Doctor "This plan," he whispered "You going to tell us?"

"… No longer unique in the universe," Winters proclaimed.

The Doctor played with the key around his neck, watching the Master closely "If I can get this around the Master's neck, cancel out his perception, they'll see him for real." He looked around nervously "It's just hard to go unnoticed with everyone on red alert. If they stop me you've got a key."

Jack nodded "Yes, sir."

"I'll get him," Martha pointed out grimly.

"And I ask you now," Winters continued "I ask of the human race, to join with me in welcoming our friends. I give you the Toclafane." Four spheres appeared "My name is Arthur Coleman Winters, President-Elect of the United States of America and designated representative of the United Nations. I welcome you to the planet Earth and its associated moon."

"_You're not the Master,_" a sphere with a male voice practically pouted.

A female voice sounded from another one "_We like the Mister Master._"

"_We don't like you._"

Winters looked a bit confused "I can be master if you so wish. I will accept mastery over you if that is God's will."

"Oh, God," Tyra groaned, hitting her head against the Doctor's shoulder lightly. Was it just her or was the man just… embarrassing? Who voted for this clown?

"_Man is stupid,_" one of the male spheres chuckled.

They flitted around each other "_Master is our friend._"

"_Where's my Master, pretty please?_" the female one demanded.

The Master jumped up from his chair "Oh, alright, then. It's me. Ta da! Sorry, sorry, I have this effect. People just get obsessed. Is it the smile? Is it the aftershave? Is it the capacity to laugh at myself? I don't know. It's crazy."

"A bit like you, then," Tyra breathed quietly, earning a grin and a nudge in the side from Jack.

President Winters glared at the Time Lord "Saxon, what are you talking about?"

"I'm taking control, Uncle Sam," he mocked "Starting with you." The Master nodded at the spheres "Kill him." One of the floating balls pointed its weapon at the President, blasting him into tiny pieced "Guards."

"Nobody move," the guards shouted, pointing their guns "Nobody move."

"Now then," the Master started almost pleasantly "Peoples of the Earth. Please attend carefully…" It was then that the Doctor surged forward, taking off his key at the same time. Two men in black grabbed him tightly "We meet at last, Doctor. Oh, ho. I love saying that."

Tyra made to step forward but Jack grabbed her arm, shaking his head. The Doctor looked up at his former friend "Stop it! Stop it now."

"As if a perception filter is going to work on me," the Master scoffed "And look. It's the girlie and the freaks. Although, I'm not sure which one is which." Jack took off running but was struck down almost immediately "Laser screwdriver. Who'd have sonic? And the good thing is, he's not dead for long. I get to kill him again."

Since Martha was now kneeling by Jack's side, Tyra took her chance and sped forward. She had almost reached the Master when one of the guards threw a bucket of water at her. She fell to her knees, crying out in pain at the burn of the vervain on her skin.

A pair of shoes entered her vision as her head was jerked up by her hair "Well, well, well," the Master smirked at the sight of – what felt like really painful – burns "It seems like I did my research on you, didn't I? I can't have you interfering." With that, he pulled out a syringe and jabbed it into Tyra's neck. As soon as he let her go, she collapsed in on herself, landing face-first in the vervain water. The world was getting more and more blurry around her as the Vervain worked its way through her system, burning as it went. After several minutes, Tyra couldn't do more than bite her tongue at the fire that was spreading through her body "You would be surprised how much information UNIT has about your kind and even your family, Tyra Mikaelson."

"Master, just calm down," the Doctor pleaded, throwing Tyra a concerned look "Just look at what you're doing. Just stop. If you could see yourself."

The Master rolled his eyes and turned to the camera "Oh, do excuse me. Little bit of personal business. Back in a minute." He waved his hand at the guard holding the Doctor "Let him go."

"It's that sound. The sound in your head. What if I could help?" the Doctor offered.

"Oh, how to shut him up?" Saxon groaned "I know. Memory Lane." He sat down on the bottom step, leaning forward to look at the Doctor "Professor Lazarus. Remember him and his genetic manipulation device? What, did you think that little Tish got that job merely by coincidence? I've been laying traps for you all this time. And if I can concentrate all that Lazarus technology into one little screwdriver?" The Master smirked "But, ooh, if I only had the Doctor's biological code. Oh, wait a minute, I do." He jumped up and opened a large metal briefcase "I've got his hand. And if Lazarus made himself younger, what if I reversed it? Another hundred years?" The Master aimed his screwdriver at the Doctor, who was thrown into rapid convulsions.

Tyra winced, trying to get up to help the Doctor. As soon as she had managed to get upright some guards grabbed her, only to press another syringe into her neck. She groaned when the blurriness and the burning sensation worsened and her world went black.

**Hey, guys. I have a few ideas for AU series of this if you would be interested in those? For example, one is where Kol dies and Tyra meets the Doctor in School Reunion or another is where things go differently and she meets the first Doctor instead of the ninth. **

**Would that be something you'd want to read?**

**Nick**


	28. The Year That Never Was

**Warning: This chapter has mentions of physical and mental torture. They aren't too graphic but after this chapter, the story will deal with the aftermath heavily.**

**Nick**

It was about a week after the Master took over that Tyra was made to leave the room she had been locked into for the first time. She spent most of the time on the Valiant pumped full of vervain and by now she was more or less used to the burning sensation that coursed through her veins. As used to it as someone could be. Most she wondered whether the Master was aware that vampires built up a tolerance for vervain the more they're exposed to it.

The Master had spared no expenses and even invested in some vervain-soaked shackles he had managed to get spelled by a witch. At least that's what Tyra had assumed since she hadn't been able to break through them, no matter how hard she tried. That and the pain she felt as the shackles kept digging into her skin was excruciating.

One of the guards pushed Tyra to her knees, keeping a hold of her shoulders "How is my little vampire pet doing?" the Master inquired, turning to face Tyra with a grin that made fear well up inside of the girl. That grin was foreboding – there was no other word to describe it.

"Bite me," Tyra spat, her gaze involuntarily going to the Doctor. He was curled up outside of a tent, chained to the wall.

"That's more your thing," the Master pointed out, sauntering over to her. Without a moment of hesitation, he crouched down before her "I have a little present for you. Imagine my surprise when one of my contacts informed me of someone… special. Someone that even the almighty Originals fear."

Tyra looked up at him in surprise and confusion "What?"

"I believe the question you want answered is 'Who?' Oh, there was just one thing I had to promise him," the Master explained, patting Tyra's head mockingly "You can come in now." He motioned to the door, causing every eye in the room to turn.

"No," Tyra breathed, recognising the person in the doorway immediately. It was the last person she ever wanted to see again "No…"

Heads turned from the man who had entered to Tyra and back, watching as Mikael stalked forwards with a predatory glint in his eyes "Hello, girl."

"Father." Tyra spat out the word, glaring up at the man defiantly. Her glare might have been more effective, had she not been subdued with vervain and held down by some humans.

Mikael chuckled in sadistic amusement "Oh, I have missed you."

"Sure you have," Tyra mocked, falling limp in the guards' arms. She had never been able to go against her father, even when she was able to fight and move normally. But now? Shackled down and pumped full of vervain? Yeah, she had even less of a chance. Tyra was aware of that – of course, she was – but that didn't mean that she was going to give up without trying. She was going to go down fighting. Not for herself but for Niklaus, for all of her siblings.

"You know," Mikael started, reaching out to touch Tyra's face. She slapped the offending limb away, only to find herself pressed against a wall. Mikael sneered, hand clenched around his daughter's throat. Tyra choked at the tightness of the grip "I still remember the last time. I will make you suffer for daring to consort with those witches and trapping me in that tomb, you little bitch. I could have already taken care of the abomination if not for you."

_Flashback_

_Tyra was standing with a group of witches from the Alpha Coven that she and Kol founded several centuries back. She might not have seen her siblings since she ran off but that didn't mean that she wouldn't do anything to protect them._

"_We are ready," Eliza, one of the elders spoke up, getting in position. The ritual was set up and Tyra was sure that it would work… It would free them of the pain and horror that came from the one person her siblings and she were afraid of._

_The Original nodded "I'm going in. You know what to do… Don't let me down." She took a couple of deep breaths and stomped down the fear at what she was going to do. She was trying to trap her father – Mikael._

_Tyra threw the front door to the house open, marching in without anyone stopping her. No human to keep this house untouchable by vampires, no guards, nothing. Only her father and her… and the group of witches who were waiting for the right moment to strike "Hello, Father."_

_Mikael turned around and smirked at his youngest daughter "Well, well, well. If it isn't my precious little haukr. I see you haven't changed at all."_

_"Did you expect me to?" Tyra tilted her head, trying to hide her feelings at seeing the man again "I see that you didn't get any closer to completing your goal either."_

_The Original Hunter snarled and lunged at the girl in front of him. She dodged quickly and sped out the door. Better to get this over with before he caught on "You can't escape me, girl."_

"_Oh, I can but I'm not trying to," Tyra smirked, giving the signal. As soon as her hand lowered again, the group started chanting in unison._

_Mikael ran to the door, almost stumbling back when he hit a barrier that the witches had erected as soon as the younger Original left the building "Oh, very clever," he complimented, clapping with a confident smirk on his face. From her place, she could see the doubt in his eyes, though "What are you going to do now? Keep me in here for all eternity?"_

"_I don't have to," the youngest Original shrugged, watching at the man she called his father "After all… we have been trying to get rid of you for a long time."_

"_And what makes you think that you can do that with the help of your pathetic little group, little haukr?" the Original Hunter demanded._

_This time a smirk crossed the girl's face "Give it a minute," she told him, holding up a finger._

_Almost as soon as she finished speaking, Mikael started choking "What have you done?"_

"_I hope you rot in hell," Tyra spat "Or… a coffin. That will do too." She glared at the man in front of her, for the first time not feeling any fear when facing him "Actually… That will more than do. And I will make sure that you'll stay in there for as long as I'm around." Tyra glanced at the leader of the witches "See to it, will you?"_

_Her father fell to his knees, veins slowly creeping up his face "You will pay for this," he rasped "I will hunt you down like the little bitch you are. You and Niklaus both."_

_With that, he fell silent, pitching forward. Tyra cautiously stepped closer, nudging his side with the toe of her show "Get rid of him. And make sure that he stays put." The last thing the witches did was a spell put on him and the tomb they decided to put him into. There was no need for curious people to walk in here and free him by accident…_

_End Flashback_

Tyra started laughing, internally wincing at the rasp in her voice "You mean, you could have finished the job you couldn't manage in the past one thousand years? And that wasn't for the lack of trying." She grunted when her head snapped to the side, the sheer force of the punch almost taking off her head.

"Silence. You will not speak to me like this," he demanded.

"Or what?" Tyra challenged, feeling as if she would regret mouthing off to him sooner rather than later "You'll kill me? Go right ahead. At least Nik will be safe from you."

Mikael pulled her head back, maintaining a tight grip on Tyra's long hair "I will make you suffer for siding with that whelp."

"No," the Doctor called out, straining against the chains that were holding him back. His eyes screamed what his mouth wasn't saying. He wanted to kill this man so badly. After everything, he did to his children – to Tyra.

The Master turned his head away from the intriguing scene the two Originals were causing and kicked the aged Doctor in the side "You be quiet," he hissed, pulling at one of the chains "There's nothing you can do but watch. How does it feel to be powerless? To fail to protect the one you so obviously love?"

Before Tyra could open her mouth to retort, Mikael turned to the Master "Speaking of Niklaus. You said he would be here?"

"And he is," the Master reassured "He's in the cells. The guards will show you the way."

Tyra's father – if anyone could call him that – shook his head "Not just yet. There is something I want to know before that." He squinted at his daughter "Tell me, girl. Are you still in contact with your siblings?"

"No," Tyra whispered.

"Hm," Mikael hummed, raising a disbelieving eyebrow "So you just decided to abandon them after what? A thousand years?"

Tyra shrugged, trying to sound unconcerned "You can only stand to be around them for so long."

"Then you won't have a problem with me finally getting rid of Niklaus, I'm sure," Mikael smirked, letting go of Tyra. He was aware that she didn't mean it. It was obvious from the look in her eyes but the more she suffered, the happier he was going to be "Come on, then."

"What?"

Mikael rolled his eyes impatiently "You and I are going to see Niklaus. And don't even think about trying to run."

"Well, that was boring," the Master mumbled, leaning against the railing above the Doctor's head with his arms crossed "I was hoping for a bit more action."

The Doctor looked up at him, panic hidden in his eyes as Mikael shoved Tyra out of the room "You don't know what you did. Please… It's not too late to stop this."

"And give up?" the Master snorted "I don't think so. Better get used to me being in charge, Doctor."

* * *

It took them about ten minutes to get down to the cells. Tyra's eyes widened when she realised just how close Klaus had been the whole time. They were in cells right next to each other "No," Tyra mumbled, fighting against Mikael's grip. He had grasped the back of her neck on the way down, practically dragging her along "Leave him alone, please."

Mikael snorted, letting go of the girl with a shove. She fell into the door one of the guards had opened for him, crashing to the ground harshly.

Niklaus looked up from where he was tied to a wall "Mikael," he breathed, his eyes blown wide. He swallowed heavily, meeting the eyes of the man who he thought had been his father a long time ago. After a moment of staring at the smug satisfaction, his gaze wandered down, finding his baby sister "Ty… What?"

"Nik… I'm sorry… I'm so sorry," Tyra whispered, tears in her eyes.

"Touching," Mikael sneered, kicking his daughter's side roughly "Get up and be quiet."

Klaus struggled against the chains "Leave her alone."

Mikael glanced from Klaus to Tyra and smirked "I'm going to end this now." He toyed with the White Oak stake "This is finally going to be done. How you escaped me for as long as you did, I don't know. Thank your sister for the rest. Right, little haukr?"

"Go fuck yourself," Tyra spat, stepping in between her brother and Mikael.

Klaus let out a muffled sound "Don't, Ty," he pleaded "Please… Just – Just close your eyes."

"Get out of the way, girl," Mikael spoke up dangerously.

"No," she shook her head "You'll have to go through me first."

"Tyra," Niklaus snapped.

She shook her head "This is my fault. I won't let you hurt him." The second part was said to her father.

"You get one more chance to step aside before I make you," Mikael threatened, glaring at his daughter dangerously.

Tyra set her jaw stubbornly "I won't let you hurt him."

"So be it," he nodded simply and moved forward, snapping Tyra's neck easily.

Klaus let out a gasp "No. Ty… Stop it."

"I warned her," Mikael shrugged unconcernedly, stepping over the temporarily dead girl "Now to you…"

* * *

Tyra woke up to a couple of hard slaps to the face. She groaned, blinking a couple of times to adjust her vision "Ah, it seems as if your sister joined us for the finale, whelp," Mikael's hateful voice reached her ears.

Tyra's head snapped up and she whined at the sight in front of her "Nik," she breathed, blinking back the tears. Her brother was bloody and looked like Mikael had taken his frustrations out on him for a long time "Please," she begged, staring at her father pleadingly "Just… You don't have to do this."

Mikael scoffed, throwing the stake he was holding at her. Tyra jerked against the shackles that were holding her against the wall and groaned in pain.

"Leave her alone," Klaus hissed, trying to fight against his bonds. He didn't get much of a chance before Mikael grabbed him by the throat harshly.

Tyra flinched when her father got more violent and it didn't take long until Klaus was breathing heavily, his eyes closed tightly, trying desperately not to show the pain he was in.

"Well," Mikael murmured, looking down at the heap that was his wife's bastard son "Let's finish this once and for all." With slow and precise movements, he pulled out the White Oak stake from his inner pocket and held it up for Niklaus to see "I want you to beg me, boy. Beg for your death."

Klaus sneered, his eyes darting towards Tyra. He didn't want her to see this, to see him like this "Never."

"I will have to make you, then," Mikael remarked, sounding vaguely disappointed. He shrugged and turned around "I think I have the perfect idea…" Mikael circled Tyra for a moment before he hit her in the face "Beg or I'll make your darling little sister here suffer."

Tyra lifted her head with a little difficulty "Nik, don't," she called out, begging her brother with her eyes "He'll hurt me anyway."

"No," Klaus closed his eyes for a moment "Ty… Be strong, alright? Maybe I'll finally see Henrik again." The Hybrid glared at Mikael "Please," he grounded out "Kill me."

Mikael raised his eyebrows in amusement, having ignored the scene going on in front of him. His mind was focussed on one thing and one thing only. He wanted Klaus dead "How the mighty have fallen," he taunted and leaned down to whisper in his daughter's ear "Watch closely. I want you to remember this moment for a long time."

What happened next would be quite literally burned into Tyra's memory. As soon as the stake hit Klaus' heart, it caught on fire. It burned and burned until her brother was just charred remains. Tears were streaming down her face silently as Mikael watched smugly.

"I think I'm going to leave that to sink in for a while," Mikael remarked, turning to leave the room "Have fun."

Tyra slumped against the chains, causing them to cut into her wrists uncomfortably but she barely felt it. She had no strength left and the only thing that went through her head was a repeat of the scene she had just witnessed. She couldn't look away from the body at her feet, just staring at what remained of her older brother for what felt like forever.

* * *

The Master had his fun with taunting the Doctor about his little vampire girlfriend. The uncertainty that the Doctor was facing proved to be very amusing to the other Time Lord. Even if he was a little disgusted with what Mikael was doing to his own children. The Master had been a father once and he knew that even if he wasn't the best father of all times, he would never ever hurt his daughter. Even if the drums had gotten bad, he would rather kill himself than laying a hand on his child.

One day, around a few months into his reign, he had the great idea to show the Doctor exactly what was happening to his vampire. He pulled the aged Doctor into his wheelchair and hurried him over to the conference table "I have a surprise for you," the Master announced with a grin.

The Doctor ignored him, not in the mood for any of the Master's tricks today. He was worried about Tyra and trying to think of some kind of plan. While he had Martha acting out part of his Plan B, he was still working on Plan A.

When he saw the image on the screen, he couldn't hold back the noise of shock "Ty…"

The Master studied the Doctor's expression with curiosity "You really do love her," he remarked in surprise before shaking his head "You still haven't learned, you sentimental fool."

"Master, please," the Doctor rasped, looking up at his old friend pleadingly. He couldn't watch the scene anymore. Tyra was strung up against a wall with Mikael standing in front of her. She looked awful and it made his heart constrict "Please… You can't let that continue. Just help her. Please."

The Master scoffed "As if I would. It hurts you and that is good enough for me."

The Doctor could see what he wasn't saying. He could see that even if the Master was trying to hide it, he was thinking of his daughter. As the Doctor was watching the scene again, he couldn't help but think of his own children. He would have never hurt them. The more he had found out about Mikael, the more he hated the man. Now that he saw how Mikael actually treated his children, he could understand why Tyra had tried to get rid of him. The only thing the Doctor regretted was that it hadn't lasted and now Tyra was paying the price.

* * *

Tyra had no idea how much time had passed since the day the Master brought the Toclafane to Earth. She couldn't even say when time started slipping away from her. It felt like centuries.

After a steady amount of torture, her body had slowly started to shut down. It was taking her a lot longer than normal to revive and all the White Oak and vervain that was in her wounds stopped them from healing. Her body was one big wound by now and if that wasn't enough, Mikael had started slipping into Tyra's head, messing with her. The more time passed, the less she knew what was real and what wasn't. She was afraid to go to sleep…

There weren't a lot of things she was sure of anymore. One was that Niklaus was dead. She had seen him burn… Right in front of her. That was the first thing that started to break her.

The second followed not long after. While Tyra didn't know the exact time she had been in this cursed room, she guessed that it had to have taken several months at least. Mikael had taken a while to hunt down the coffins that held the rest of his children. He brought them in front of Tyra before eventually re-daggering them, making sure their bodies would never be found again. The only one who was still safe was Elijah. Tyra had no idea how he avoided detection but it gave her hope. If at least one of her siblings was free from Mikael…

It wasn't until one day when Mikael came into the room with a wide smirk on his face "I have some news for you, little haukr," he murmured, twirling his trusty dagger in his hands "I found Elijah." As soon as those words left his lips, Tyra gasped in pain. Her vision started to fade and the last thing she saw was the dagger stuck in her chest.

* * *

Damon was devastated. He had looked for a way to get to Tyra since he had seen the Doctor being aged by that madman. He had heard the name 'Valiant' being mentioned but it had taken him a while to figure out what that was. After that, his hunt had started. The aircraft carrier had moved every month or so, making it hard to track although Damon had always been hot on their heels. Things had changed when he had met Martha, though. She had come back to London after travelling the world and told him everything she knew about their crappy situation.

_Flashback_

"_Martha?" Damon blinked, recognizing the girl in front of him immediately. Who he didn't recognize was the man who was standing behind her protectively. Actually, he seemed somewhat familiar but… Damon couldn't quite place him._

_Martha looked at the vampire with wide eyes "Damon," she exclaimed, hurrying over to wrap her arms around him in a hug "How have you been?"_

"_Just peachy," Damon snorted._

_Martha grinned sheepishly "I know. Stupid questions," she shrugged "I meant to ask what you're doing here in London. Last I checked you were in America? At least, that's why Ty told me."_

_"Well, she's not wrong," Damon shrugged "I was looking for her. After seeing what that… bastard did to the Doctor. I really don't want to think about what he might do to Tyra."_

_The man behind Martha studied Damon curiously. He didn't think that Tyra would have had any ties to baby vampires. Then again, she always did like to take in stray and if she saw potential in the man… Well, he could definitely see the loyalty in Damon and a part of him appreciated it. While he would have loved nothing more than to go and look for his sister, he was told to stay away. A group of witches – apparently from a coven called the 'Alpha Coven' – found Elijah just after the Master had taken over. They warned him of bad things happening if he got too close and that his mission was to help the traveller. Help the woman spread the message through the world and to keep her safe "You care for her?"_

_Damon's eyes narrowed "Who's asking?"_

"_Damon," Martha cut in, putting her hand on her Companion's arm "That's Elijah. He's Tyra's brother."_

_Realization lit up in Damon's eyes and he couldn't resist the small dig that escaped his mouth "Oh, so you're one of the people she ran away from. She never did mention your names."_

"_You know my sister well, then?" Elijah asked, not bothering to correct the younger vampire's tone. It had been partially his fault that Tyra left after all. His and Niklaus'._

_"I do," Damon inclined his head "But I'm not here for chit-chat." He turned back to Martha "Do you know a way onto the Valiant? I tried but they always moved before I could manage to get on board."_

_Martha tilted her head thoughtfully "I know a way but… I can't promise you that it will work." She reached into her pocket "I think I managed to find out how to reverse the last trip." Damon looked down at her hands and the weird bracelet thing, raising an eyebrow "What?" Martha exclaimed, seeing his look "I had a year. It's no guarantee but… You might be able to reach the Valiant with this."_

_Before Damon could do anything more than reach out, Elijah put his hand on his wrist "Make sure she's alright?" he asked, his eyes showing the concern he felt. From what Martha had told him, Tyra could have been through hell at the Master's hands._

"_I will," Damon vowed._

_Flashback End_

The bracelet thing had worked. Damon had appeared on the more or less empty flight deck, taking a moment to compose himself before speeding off. He hadn't been seen. The rest wasn't his concern at the moment. Tyra was.

The moment he found her, though… Nothing could have prepared him for that. His friend – sister, really – was chained to a wall with what appeared to be a silver dagger sticking out of her chest. She looked like hell with wounds all over her body. Wounds that looked like they wouldn't heal anytime soon.

As soon as he was within arm's reach, the smell of vervain entered his nose, causing him to grimace. Whoever did this stuffed her wounds with vervain? He reached out to open the shackles, pulling the dagger out at the same time "What the hell?" He whispered, drawing his hand back when the shackles burned his hands "What the hell happened here?" It took him a few moments to get Tyra down and he immediately pulled her into his arms, sinking to the ground. She couldn't be dead. He still needed her. Who would tell him that he was an idiot? Who would he call if he needed help? Damon hadn't realised it before but Tyra was easily one of the most important people in his life. She had done so much for him over the course of his life. He just wished that he could have helped her.

It took a while but soon the Original's eyes fluttered open, flinching when she felt hands on her. She was about to panic when she recognised the familiar raven hair and the voice whispering to her "D'mon?" her raw voice rasped.

Damon's head snapped up "Ty? How… You were dead," he breathed "There was a dagger and it was… You were dead."

Tyra looked around, seeing that she was still in the same room she had been in since the beginning. Since Klaus… "Mikael?" she breathed, her voice trembling with fear.

"I don't know who that is," Damon murmured, raising his hand to touch the Original's face. Tyra flinched back and whimpered when the motion made pain shoot through her body. Damon lowered his hand, his eyes showing the sadness he was feeling "I'm not going to hurt you, Ty."

"I know," she whispered, her eyes drifting close again. She leaned against his chest heavily "'M not feeling good, Day."

Damon let out an incredulous laugh "Yeah, I can imagine that," he shook his head "Come on. Let's get you out of here. Do you have any idea where the Doctor could be?"

"Flight deck," Tyra told him, crying out in pain when Damon carefully lifted her up, apologising the whole way.

* * *

"Tyra," a familiar voice called out "Who the hell are you?"

Damon's grip on his friend tightened "Me? Who are you?"

"Jack." Tyra raised her head a little, squinting at the man in front of her.

"Hey," Jack whispered, studying the girl sadly. His hand reached out to caress the dead-looking girl's forehead gently. Tyra flinched away from the touch again, cursing herself internally. If anyone knew how she felt it was him… He must have died as often as she did if not more. Only it wasn't his father who decided to torture him time and time again "Down the corridor to the right. Get her to the flight deck and make sure nothing else happens to her."

Damon nodded, his stance relaxing at their familiar interaction "What's happening?"

"It's over," the Captain called over his shoulder "Everything is going to be back to normal soon."

"That's good," the Salvatore murmured to himself "Did you hear that, Ty? You're going to be okay."

Just as the two vampires entered the flight deck, the spheres outside disappeared and the ship started shaking, papers flying everywhere. Damon crouched down, making sure that Tyra wouldn't get hurt in whatever was going on "Everyone get down," the Doctor shouted, catching sight of Damon for a moment but before he could question the vampire's presence, he hit the ground "Time is reversing." The Master was handing onto some railings as wind swept around both outside and inside. When everything calmed down, the Doctor carefully got to his feet "The paradox is broken. We're reverted back, one year and one day. Two minutes past eight in the morning."

"_This is UNIT central,_" a man called out over the radio "_What's happening up there? We just saw the President assassinated._"

"Just after the President was killed but just before the spheres arrived." The Doctor caught sight of the girl in Damon's arms "Tyra," he gasped, hurrying over.

Martha looked at him in confusion before she saw exactly what the Doctor had seen "Oh, God."

"Damon, what are you doing here?" the Doctor asked, holding out his arms to pull Tyra closer to his own body "Come on, Tyra. Can you look at me?"

Tyra turned her head towards the voice "Mikael?"

"He's gone, Ty," the Doctor assured "It's over."

"A year?" Tyra whispered, feeling exhausted as the world around her moved enough to make her sick to her stomach. She remembered what the Doctor said earlier. One year and one day "That was a year? Only a year?"

Francine stepped forward hesitatingly. She didn't want to disturb them but there was something on her mind "But… I can remember it."

The Doctor looked over absentmindedly, his hand carefully running through Tyra's hair as she relaxed into him "We're at the eye of the storm. The only ones who'll ever know."

Before anyone could say anything else, the Master made a run for the door but was stopped by Jack reentering "Who, big fella," the Captain exclaimed, turning the other Time Lord around "You don't wanna miss the party." He held out his hand to the guard next to him "Cuffs. So, what do we do with this one?"

"We kill him," Clive spat.

Tish nodded in agreement "We execute him."

"No," the Doctor shook his head "That's not the solution."

Francine grabbed a gun from the ground and aimed it at the Master "Oh, I think so. Because all those things, they still happened because of him. I saw them."

"Go on," the Master egged her on, his gaze trailing from the gun to the girl in the Doctor's arms before snapping back to the gun "Do it."

"Francine," the Doctor soother "You're better than him." Martha got her mother to lower the gun and pulled her into a hug.

The Master relaxed a little "You still haven't answered the question. What happens to me?"

"You're my responsibility from now on. The only Time Lord left in existence," the Doctor murmured.

Jack blinked at the Doctor incredulously "Yeah, but you can't trust him and do you really want Tyra to have to be around him?"

"The only safe place for him is the Tardis," the Doctor argued.

"You mean you're just going to keep me?" the Master spat.

The Doctor nodded "Mm. If that's what I have to do. It's time to change."

Damon let out a snort "You're delusional if you think Tyra will stay around if you take him along. I might not know what exactly happened to her but… Just look. Do you really think that she wants him anywhere near her if he has something to do with all of this?"

"He didn't hurt her. That was all Mikael."

"That's the third time I'm hearing that name," Damon huffed "Who is he supposed to be?"

The Doctor looked over at him "Her father."

Damon opened and closed his mouth a few times when a gunshot rang out. The Doctor whirled around to stare at the Master with wide eyes. He handed Tyra over to Damon, hurrying over to the other Time Lord, catching him as he staggered back. Damon shook his head "Unbelievable."

"I agree," Jack nodded, watching the Doctor comforting the Master instead of the girl he was in love with.

Tish hesitatingly moved closer to the three on the ground "Is – Is she going to be alright?" They had been talking about Tyra and the girl had barely reacted to her name being mentioned.

Jack looked up at the girl he had gotten to know over the Year "I don't know. I really don't…" He caught sight of Tyra's somewhat unfocused gaze and smiled sadly "How about we get out of here, Valkyrie? I think we all deserve a little bit of downtime."

The Doctor looked over now that the Master was dead and nodded with a sigh "Could one of you take Tyra? Martha, get your family to the Tardis. I'll take them home."

"I'm sorry," the immortal Captain told Tyra, slipping his arms around her.

Tyra cried out in pain when he lifted her up, her stomach rebelling against the movement. Her head turned to the side, heaving up the small amount of blood that Mikael had fed her earlier. A tear dropped from her eye "Please," she whispered, not sure whether she was pleading with Jack or an unknown entity "I'm sorry. It hurts. Please, stop."

"I know, Valkyrie," Jack soothed, making sure to keep his hold as gentle as possible "Just hold on. You'll be fine."

"Just close your eyes," Damon murmured.


	29. Time Crash

Tyra was curled up on the jump seat as tightly as she could manage with only the Tardis' painkillers keeping her up, staring into space. Ever since the Master died and Mikael vanished into the hole he had been rotting in before, she just didn't feel like she wanted to go on anymore. She could still see Niklaus being slaughtered in front of her, smell him burning. Kol, Finn and even Rebekah tortured and daggered, thrown into the sea. The pictures were burnt into her mind the same way the scars were etched into her skin. And the worst thing was that no one really remembered. Mikael didn't remember torturing her, Klaus didn't remember dying, Elijah didn't remember being the only one of his siblings still free. He also didn't remember helping Martha to save the world. Tyra had so far avoided looking into any mirrors as the scar on her face – one of the worst ones she had – was still raw and she didn't want to see how she looked. The knowledge of how she felt was more than enough, she didn't need a visual to go along with it.

"Ty," Jack called out quietly, sitting down on the jump seat next to her.

She jerked away from his hand, falling off the other side of the seat with a pained whimper "What?" she whispered. It had been around two weeks since the Doctor had burned the Master's body, two weeks since the Doctor had done something other than mourning and she had spent most of her time with Jack and Damon until the Doctor brought him back to Mystic Falls a few days ago. She didn't blame the Doctor for mourning his former friend though. She would never blame him. The Master had been his friend and no matter how psychotic he turned out to be… They were still friends.

"I'm sorry," Jack murmured, holding out his hand for her to take. They had done a lot of healing together although Tyra was by far worse off than him. His body had healed from the Master's torture, Tyra wasn't so lucky. She wasn't as bad as she had been right after but her wounds only looked marginally better "You know… You can always visit me, okay? I'd love to introduce my Valkyrie to my team."

"Maybe," Tyra nodded with a tiny smile. It wasn't much but apparently enough for him.

Jack reached out slowly, pulling Tyra into a loose embrace and pressed a small kiss to her forehead "Take care of yourself, alright?" She nodded, her eyes drifting back to the console. Jack let out a sigh and ran his hand through her hair one more time, walking past her and out of the Tardis where the other two were waiting for him.

"How is she?" the Doctor asked worriedly. He hadn't stayed away because he wanted to but because he thought that Jack and Damon would be able to help her more. It probably hadn't been his smartest idea from the look Damon had sent him when he dropped him off but… He felt like it was his fault that this happened. Not only to Tyra but to Jack, Martha and Martha's family. To the whole world.

Jack shook his head "I don't know what to tell you," he murmured "She's different now. You know, I never thought something could hurt her as much as Mikael did. She was always so… strong. That someone could do this much damage is scary."

"But she'll be alright?" Martha asked, looking up at the Doctor "You'll look after her, right?"

"I will look after her," the Doctor nodded "And she will get better. Even if it takes a hundred years."

Jack clapped the Doctor's back "That's good to hear." He paused, considering whether or not to voice his concerns. In the end, he decided to just spit it out "I'm a little worried. You know how your life is. One adventure after the other. Promise me something, Doctor?"

"For her? Anything," he murmured.

"If you can't stay out of trouble, I want you to bring her here. Bring her to Cardiff," Jack told him "Not forever but for a little while until she can go running around the universe with you again. This is nothing against you. You know that, right?"

The Doctor bit down on his lips. He knew that Jack didn't mean it in a bad way. He was just as worried as the Doctor and Martha. They had all seen how much Tyra had changed "I will. I promise you, Jack."

The three of them fell into silence, staring out onto the Plass quietly. A few minutes of watching people and Martha sighed "Time was, every single one of these people knew your name. Now they've all forgotten you."

"Good," the Doctor nodded.

"Back to work," Jack sighed, throwing one look at the Tardis.

The Doctor looked at both Martha and Jack "I don't mind, though. Come with me. I'm sure Tyra would love it as well."

"I had plenty of time to think that past year, the year that never was, and I kept thinking about that team of mine," Jack explained "While I would like to stay with Ty and help her in any way I can… I can't. Like you said, Doctor, responsibility."

"Defending the Earth," the Doctor smiled softly "Can't argue with that." He grabbed Jack's hand, exposing the Vortex Manipulator on his wrist.

"Hey," Jack argued "I need that."

The Doctor shook his head "I can't have you walking around with a time-travelling teleport. You could go anywhere, twice. The second time to apologise." He sonicked the manipulator.

"And what about me?" Jack asked carefully "Can you fix that? Will I ever be able to die?"

"Nothing I can do," the Doctor explained apologetically "You're an impossible thing, Jack."

Jack let out a laugh "Been called that before. Sir. Ma'am." He nodded, turning to walk off before he stopped again "But I keep wondering. What about ageing? Because I can't die but I keep getting older. The odd little grey hair, you know. What happens if I live for a million years?"

"I really don't know," the Doctor shrugged.

"Okay, vanity," Jack replied, holding up his hands "Sorry. Yeah, can't help it. Used to be a poster boy when I was a kid living on the Boeshane Peninsula. Tiny little place. I was the first one ever to be signed up for the Time Agency. They were so proud." A wistful smile grew on his face "The Face of Boe, they called me. Hmm. I'll see you." He jogged off towards Torchwood's secret entrance, leaving the Doctor and Martha to stare after him in shock.

"No," the Doctor exclaimed, shaking his head.

Martha opened and closed her mouth several times "It can't be."

"No," the Doctor breathed again "Definitely not. No. No."

Martha sighed "Can you bring me home?"

"Erm… Yeah, sure," the Doctor nodded "Are you really sure that you want to leave?"

"Yeah. I spent all these years training to be a doctor. Now I've got my family to look after. They saw half the planet slaughtered and they're devastated. I can't leave them."

The Doctor hummed in understanding "Of course not. Thank you. Martha Jones, you saved the world."

"Yes, I did," she smiled, allowing him to pull her into a big hug "You know, I spent a bit of time with you thinking I was second best. Well, not a lot but at the beginning. Tyra, though, was… She told me a lot about you. Nothing too private but about the time she spent with you. You know what I realised? I am good."

The Doctor smiled at her, opening the Tardis door for Martha to go through first. Tyra was still sitting on the jump seat. Martha headed over to her and started talking to her quietly while the Doctor set the Tardis in motion.

Before she left, Martha pointed at the two "I'm not having you two disappear on me. If I call – when I call – you'd better come running. Got it?"

"Got it," the Doctor told her. As soon as the door closed behind her, the Doctor turned to Tyra "So, what do you want to do now?"

"Can we go and see Nik? He's alive, right? You said that he would be alive because the Master got rid of his… of the…" She broke off, looking up at him with fresh tears in her eyes, her teeth digging into her bottom lip harshly "Please. I have to know that he's okay."

"If that's what you want," the Doctor smiled sadly. Tyra was grateful that he didn't deny her that… She really, really needed to see Niklaus right now. The Doctor pressed a few buttons and pulled some levers before holding his hand out to Tyra. She shook her head, trying to dispel the image of her brother's lifeless body, burning "Come on." The two walked out of the Tardis and into a huge foyer. Tyra had to smile a little since this practically screamed Klaus to her. Actually, this was something most of her siblings would own.

"Who are you?" a dark-skinned girl around Tyra's physical age questioned harshly "How did you get in here?"

"Is my brother here?" Tyra questioned quietly, not enough patience to humour the girl. Her mind was focussed on finding Niklaus and only that. She had pushed everything else away in favour of playing and replaying Klaus' death over and over again "Please… I need to see Nik." She looked up at the Doctor pleadingly "I need to see him."

The Doctor wrapped his arms around Tyra and hugged her tightly, being careful of the wounds that he knew littered her whole body "Shh. It's alright. I'm sure he's here."

"Sister?" Niklaus' voice sounded from a set of big double doors.

Her head snapped up and within a second she was across the room, throwing herself into his arms "You're alive. You're alive… You're really alive," she sobbed into his shoulder, grabbing at his shirt tightly.

"Ty," Klaus soothed, wrapping his arms around his baby sister's back. Well, that definitely made the job of finding her easier. She was good at avoiding him. Very good, in fact. "What's going on? What happened?" By now, he was supporting all of her weight. Tyra flinched when Klaus' arm hit a particularly bad spot on her back but she tried to ignore the agony as best as she could.

The Doctor cleared his throat "Sorry to intrude… She wanted to see you. We had a run-in with… With your – Mikael and I think you can see how it ended."

"Mikael did this?" Klaus growled "How was it him, though? I haven't seen him since New Orleans. Do you know where he is?"

Tyra whimpered quietly at his tightened grip and nodded into his neck "Charlotte… He's desiccated in a tomb there." An image of her father flashed through her mind "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"Hey," Klaus huffed, tilting Tyra's head up "You're with me, Ty. What happened? You're in pain." He carefully carried his sister through the door he had come through earlier "Greta. Leave and don't tell anyone what happened here. Doctor? Follow me." Klaus sat down on one of the couches with Tyra in his lap. She was still clutching his shirt in her hands and wasn't about to let go anytime soon "Start talking. Actually no. I have something to say before you do."

Tyra frowned up at him in confusion, playing with her sleeves to distract herself. She was getting a lot better at pretending to the outside but her head and body were a mess and nothing would change that anytime soon "What…?"

"I wanted to apologize to you," he started "For what happened back in New Orleans."

"You mean daggering me?" she blinked "Why? You haven't been sorry before. Actually, didn't you come after me because of that? To dagger me again?"

Klaus shrugged sheepishly "Well, not really. I was looking for you since I met you in 1941. When you were with the man who was also called the Doctor. I take it you're the same man somehow?"

"I am," the Doctor nodded.

Tyra looked from one man to the other "You know, I was really confused when you went off at me back then. But I guess that's the risk of travelling through time."

"Don't forget space," the Doctor pointed out.

Klaus raised his eyebrow "You're going to have to explain that someday. But I want to know what happened with Mikael first."

Tyra glanced at the Doctor before resting her head on her brother's chest and started to tell him some of the things that happened during the Year That Never Was. Things about the Master, his death, what happened to their siblings but she left out the worst things that their father did to her… Not that she thought Niklaus wouldn't be able to handle it, it was more that she didn't think she would be able to talk about it "You were dead, Nik," she sniffled, hiding her face in his shirt "He tortured you and killed you… You burned right in front of me."

"I'm alive, little one," he whispered, tilting her head up again "Look at me. I. Am. Here."

"I'm scared, Nikki," she whispered "He hurt me… Every time I close my eyes, he's there. He's always there and it scared me so much. I can't forget him and what he…"

Klaus took a couple of deep breaths, trying to calm himself down. He was ready to hunt Mikael down and kill him right now but Tyra needed him "I'll kill him," he vowed "I will take the stake and drive it through his heart. You have my word on that."

"Are you imitating Elijah?" Tyra chuckled wetly "Isn't that usually his line?"

Klaus gasped in mock offence and was about to say something when he really looked at his sister for the first time. It had been a little difficult to see her clearly when she was clinging to him. An inflamed scar ran down the right side of her face along with the wounds that were peeking out from the oversized shirt she was wearing "He's dead. I'm so sorry."

"It's not like it's your fault," she shrugged, curling into herself. She winced at the stinging but huddled into Klaus' chest more or less comfortably "If anything it's mine. I shouldn't have gone against him. I thought it would be something you guys would be proud of but…"

"What do you mean?" Klaus questioned, pulling Tyra close again.

Tyra melted into his embrace. It felt good to be in one of her brothers' arms again. They had always given the best hugs. Although the Doctor's and Jack's were a close second "The reason he's desiccated is because of me. I – I got some witches to go against M – him and he wanted revenge."

The Doctor looked at the siblings, his hearts breaking at the sight. Tyra looked so young in Klaus' arms. He sometimes forgot that she had practically still been a child – teenager when she had been turned. Her behaviour and maturity showed her actual age though "I'm going to leave you to talk, alright? I think there are some things that should be between the two of you."

"You don't have to…" Tyra protested quietly, unsure whether she wanted him to leave, even if he was only in the Tardis.

The Doctor shook his head "I don't mind. I'll still be there in a few hours," he promised, running his hand over Tyra's hair before leaving the room.

"Do you love him?" Klaus asked, seeing the look in his sister's eyes. Normally, he would rage and try to get rid of his sisters' suitors under any circumstances but Tyra wasn't Rebekah. She never partook in the relationships that Rebekah did. In fact, she was the opposite. That Tyra had let it go this far meant that the Doctor had to be worth it.

Tyra sighed "I don't know," she murmured "I think I really do. But after everything that happened, I don't see why he would even want me. I am a mess…"

"I know I'm not the perfect role model but you should talk to him. I'm sure you'll feel better after you do. Of course, that would mean that I might have to have a talk with him about you but I can see that he really cares for you."

Tyra hummed in amusement. It was so like Klaus to be overprotective but she was thankful that he didn't treat her like she was Bekah. Not that Tyra agreed with how Klaus handled her and her boyfriends but… She had to admit that Rebekah did go overboard "Yeah… I think… I don't know. I'm scared. I know he likes me too but… Mikael…" Tears welled up in her eyes as she struggled to keep her composure.

"Screw Mikael," Klaus snapped before his voice softened "You can cry if you need to. I wouldn't blame you after what that bastard did to you. You're so brave, you know?"

Tyra sniffled and buried her face in her brother's neck, tears slowly trailing down her face and onto his shirt "I love you, Nikki."

"I love you too, Ty." He whispered stories into her ear. Stories of the past, stuff that she missed and even about what he had been up to recently. She listened intently, happy to hear about what she missed in his life.

They stayed curled up together for quite some time before Tyra sighed "I should go."

"You don't have to leave, you know?" he whispered.

"I know," she smiled lightly "And I would love to but… He's alone, Nik. I –"

Klaus nodded in understanding "I don't blame you for wanting to be with him. I just hoped that you… That you'd stay."

"Nik," she sighed, placing her hand against his cheek "You're my brother, no matter what happens and I'll always be there for you. Whether you daggered me or not. I have forgiven you for that." She pressed a kiss to his forehead, trying so hard to push everything that happened away. Klaus needed to hear this as much as she needed to say it "Go to Mystic Falls and break your curse, alright? I promise I'll be there when it happens. Just tell me when you do. Always and Forever." Tyra turned towards the couch table where a notepad was lying around. She quickly scribbled her number down and handed it to him along with the name and the location of the current Doppelgänger.

Klaus looked down at the piece of paper with a stunned look "How do you even…?"

Tyra shot him a look, making him back off with his hands up in surrender "Call me, text me. I might even come to see you sometime."

"Take some time to heal, you understand?" Klaus told her seriously, his eyes narrowing. He stepped in front of her, tilting her head up "Sleep, feed and please stay out of trouble. I can't lose you."

Tyra nodded, trying to suppress the flinch at Niklaus touching her "I will try. Thank you, Nik. For… For everything. I'll see you." She waved and walked over to where the Doctor had parked the Tardis. Her shoulders slumped slightly and she felt drained all of a sudden. She leaned back against the closed Tardis' door, exhaling shakily.

"Tyra," the Doctor called out from where he was standing by the monitor. He had watched Klaus and Tyra's talk on the monitor and just wanted to hug Tyra and never let go. How could she even think that he wouldn't love her anymore? Yes, the situation changed a little but his feelings did not.

Tyra walked over to him and sank down on the jump seat and leaned her head against his shoulder "So… Do you have anything planned?"

"Nope," the Doctor shook his head "But maybe you should sleep a little before we go somewhere? You look dead on your feet."

"I don't want to go to sleep yet," she argued quietly "I'll just go shower and change."

The Doctor ruffled her hair, ignoring how she cringed away from him. She was fine if she initiated the contact but everything that happened at face level or above caused her to flinch violently "Take your time. There is something I have to fix before we can go anywhere."

* * *

After Tyra was done, she found another shirt that belonged to the Doctor along with a pair of leggings and a sweatshirt. It was an outfit that she would wear more often now. They were really comfortable and she didn't care whether she looked like she was being swallowed by the shirts as long as they kept her body covered.

"Who are you?" she heard a strange voice just before she entered the console room. Tyra frowned and stepped a little closer, making sure that she stayed out of sight for now. The newcomer was an older man wearing cream-coloured clothes with a celery stick stuck to the lapel. That had to be the Fifth Doctor if she remembered right.

Ten smirked at his past self "Take a look."

"Oh. Oh, no," the Fifth Doctor groaned.

"Here it comes," the Doctor bounced on the balls of his feet "Yeah, I am."

"A fan," Five sighed in disgust.

Tyra let out a stifled snort, still keeping to the shadows. She didn't know whether it was alright to show herself or not.

Ten nodded before the words registered "Yeah. What?"

"This is bad," Five muttered, glancing at the monitor "Two minutes to Belgium."

"What do you mean, a fan?" Ten demanded, slightly annoyed when his gaze caught Tyra hovering by the corridor "Ty, tell him that I'm not just a fan. I'm him."

The Fifth Doctor looked up and saw a young woman coming closer, looking slightly worse for the wear "Hello," he spoke up curiously "Who are you then?"

"Tyra," she introduced herself, leaning her head back against Ten's shoulder comfortably "It's nice to meet you. This one told me a lot about you."

Suddenly, a bell tolled and the Doctors startled "The cloister bell," Five gasped.

"Right on time," Ten nodded "That's my cue." He unwrapped his arms from Tyra's shoulder, gently pushing her to sit on the jump seat. Then, they both started throwing levers.

"In a minute we're going to create a black hole strong enough to swallow the entire universe," Five called out.

Ten hummed "Yeah, that's my fault, actually. I was rebuilding the Tardis, forgot to put the shields back up. Your Tardis and my Tardis, well the same Tardis at different points in its own time stream collided and whoo – there you go, end of the universe, butterfingers. But don't worry, I know exactly how this all works out. Watch. Venting the thermobuffer, drawing the Helmic regulator – and just to finish off – let's fry to Zeiton crystals."

"You'll blow up the Tardis," Five exclaimed in horror.

Ten shook his head "No, I won't. I haven't."

"Who told you that?"

"You told me that."

Everything went white and Tyra raised her arm to shield her eyes from the sudden light that enveloped all of them. When it finally returned to normal, Five whirled around with wide eyes "Supernova and black hole at the same instant."

"The explosion cancels out the implosion," Ten continued.

"Pressure remains constant," Five finished.

Tyra wrapped her arms around herself, watching the two Doctors with a hint of a smile. It wasn't hard to guess that they were the same person with the way they were acting. While Five was somewhat less jaded, he and Ten were still the same person. When the Fifth Doctor finished the Tenth Doctor's line, she groaned quietly. He just had to teach himself.

"Right," Ten smiled "Tardises are separating. Sorry, Doctor, time's up. Back to long ago. Where are you now? Nyssa and Tegan? Cybermen and Mara and Time Lords in funny hats and the Master? Oh, he just showed up again, same as ever." Tyra flinched at the reminder of the other Time Lord, catching Ten's attention "No, no, it's alright. Come here." He opened his arms and pulled her into a careful embrace "I'm sorry, Ty."

Five looked at them like he wanted to ask about her reaction but instead sighed "Oh no, really? Does he still have that rubbish beard?"

"No, no beard this time," Ten shook his head, running his hand through Tyra's hair when she leaned against him more "Well, a wife."

"Oh, I seem to be off," Five said, shimmering in the air "What can I say? Thank you, Doctor."

"Thank you," the Tenth Doctor inclined his head.

Five grinned mischievously "I'm very welcome."

He vanished and a moment later, Ten released Tyra, flipping some switches to bring him back. He handed his former self the hat with a smile "You know, I love being you," he murmured "Back when I first started at the very beginning, I was always trying to be old and grumpy and important like you do when you're young. And then I was you and it was all dashing about and playing cricket and my voice going all squeaky when I shouted. I still do that, the voice thing. I got that from you. Oh, and the trainers, and…" Ten put on his glasses on "Snap. Because you know what, Doctor? You were my Doctor."

The Fifth Doctor's eyes softened, nodding to Tyra "Miss Tyra. Doctor. To days to come."

"All my love to long ago," Ten echoed, watching his former self vanish for good.

"Oh, Doctor," a floaty voice called out "Remember to put your shields up." Just as the Doctor went to press the button, there was the sound of a ship's horn and a big crash that threw both Tyra and the Doctor to the ground when a prow crashed into the console room. Tyra clenched her eyes shut, waiting for the pain to ebb away.

The Doctor gasped "What? What!"

Tyra turned her head and squinted up at him. She raised her eyebrow at the life belt "Weren't we in space?" she breathed, trying to get up with a grimace "How did we crash into the Titanic?"

"Hm? Oh, Ty… Are you okay?" He dropped the life belt, helping her to her feet "So you need some more painkillers? I think you're just about due another dose."

Tyra shrugged lightly "I think I'm alright but… I don't know."

"Have you eaten anything? Or fed?"

"No," she murmured "Not yet."

The Doctor grinned "Well, then. How about we go crash a party?"

Tyra smiled tiredly "I'd be happy to. Do you think it's a good idea though? I mean… Stuff usually happens and…" She broke off in the middle of making a comment about her scars but thought better of it "Never mind."

The Doctor tilted her head up "You can say what you think, alright? If you don't want to go then we're not going."

Tyra bit her lip. She knew that this could be important. The events they ended up in usually were, so she sighed internally and shoved the Doctor towards the door. She really didn't feel up for anything right now but she didn't want to deprive him either. She would just have to suck it up. How bad could it possibly get?


	30. Voyage of the Damned

_Then… _

_The Fifth Doctor's eyes softened, nodding to Tyra "Miss Tyra. Doctor. To days to come."_

"_All my love to long ago," Ten echoed, watching his former self vanish for good._

"_Oh, Doctor," a floaty voice called out "Remember to put your shields up." Just as the Doctor went to press the button, there was the sound of a ship's horn and a big crash that threw both Tyra and the Doctor to the ground when a prow crashed into the console room. Tyra clenched her eyes shut, waiting for the pain to ebb away._

_The Doctor gasped "What? What!"_

_Tyra turned her head and squinted up at him. She raised her eyebrow at the life belt "Weren't we in space?" she breathed, trying to get up with a grimace "How did we crash into the Titanic?"_

"_Hm? Oh, Ty… Are you okay?" He dropped the life belt, helping her to her feet "So you need some more painkillers? I think you're just about due another dose."_

_Tyra shrugged lightly "I think I'm alright but… I don't know."_

"_Have you eaten anything? Or fed?"_

"_No," she murmured "Not yet."_

_The Doctor grinned "Well, then. How about we go crash a party?"_

_Tyra smiled tiredly "I'd be happy to. Do you think it's a good idea though? I mean… Stuff usually happens and…" She broke off in the middle of making a comment about her scars but thought better of it "Never mind."_

_The Doctor tilted her head up "You can say what you think, alright? If you don't want to go then we're not going."_

_Tyra bit her lip. She knew that this could be important. The events they ended up in usually were, so she sighed internally and shoved the Doctor towards the door. She really didn't feel up for anything right now but she didn't want to deprive him either. She would just have to suck it up. How bad could it possibly get?_

Now…

Outside the Tardis doors, there was a group of people in Edwardian dress who were enjoying a champagne buffet. Tyra instinctively recoiled from the noise, keeping to just behind the Doctor "Are you alright?" the Doctor questioned softly, holding his hand out for Tyra to take. He was hesitant to actually stay here but he had a bad feeling about this. The Tardis wouldn't have taken them here if there wasn't any problem. She loved Tyra and knew as well as he did that she wasn't ready for any adventures yet, so for them to be here… Something was bound to happen "You can stay in the Tardis if you think it's too soon."

Tyra shook her head "No," she murmured, her eyes darting around, hoping that no one would get too close or touch her. She knew it was a bad idea but she didn't want the Doctor to run around on his own. He would – without a doubt – get into even more trouble when left to his own devices.

"Come on," the Doctor whispered, inspecting their surroundings curiously and blinked when a small red-skinned alien hurried past them in a formal dinner jacket "Right…"

Tyra flinched when the tannoy came on _"Attention all passengers. The Titanic is now in orbit above Sol Three, also known as Earth. Population, Human. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Christmas._"

The Doctor looked down at himself and grimaced "I think we should change. Or rather… I'm going to change."

Tyra glanced down at the leggings and the shirt she was wearing and tugged at the sleeves. She knew that she should change as well but… She really didn't feel like even trying. The people here seemed to be the typical upper-class, rich people. They would hone-in on every single weakness you showed and would exploit it to get what they want. At least, that's what she assumed. She didn't speak up, though. She rarely did nowadays. Every time she tried to even open her mouth, Mikael's voice echoed through her head, reminding her that no one wanted to hear her speak. Over the past weeks, she had tried to get rid of the thoughts of him, only for him to pop up at the most inappropriate of times. Mikael had been thorough, making Tyra thoroughly self-conscious and scared to do the most mundane things. She wasn't totally sure whether she could do half the stuff she had done just a year ago. Walking, talking, looking at people… Just being around these people in here made her skin crawl with anxiety but for the Doctor, she would try. Tyra wanted nothing more than to just curl up somewhere in the Tardis but Niklaus had been right. She wouldn't be able to get better if she didn't at least try. If nothing else, she still had the determination to get better. Being with Damon and Jack a little while back had helped that a lot.

Tyra entered the Tardis after the Doctor and looked over at the console when the Tardis let out a soothing hum. She had been making noises almost continuously, making sure that Tyra was as relaxed as she could be. It usually helped her to have a soothing presence in her mind.

On top of the jump seat, there was a long-sleeved dark blue tunic dress that looked incredibly soft. Tyra reached for it absentmindedly, running her hand over it slowly "Thanks," she breathed "But I don't want to change. I…" She sank down on the jump seat, grimacing as the movement pulled at her sore body. She bit down on her tongue, pressing her eyes closed for a moment.

"Are you ready?" the Doctor's quiet voice sounded from behind her. Tyra flinched in surprise, causing the pain to flare up again. The Doctor grimaced at the pain in her eyes "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you. I called your name but you didn't react."

Tyra shook her head quietly and got up.

The Doctor smiled sadly and held out his arm for her to take "Come on." As soon as she had a light hold on his arm, he leaned down, causing Tyra to stiffen before she forced herself to relax "You can lean on my arm when you need the support. Don't go overboard, Ty. Tell me when it gets too much and we'll go right back to the Tardis, alright?"

Tyra nodded, already knowing that she wouldn't be doing any of these things. Although leaning on the Doctor sounded like a good idea with the way her legs were aching already.

A man nodded to them when they walked past. His gaze trailing to Tyra with a hint of disapproval "Merry Christmas, sir, ma'am."

"Merry Christmas," the Doctor gave back, his hand tightening on Tyra's for a moment.

They walked past a man who was practically shouting into his phone "It's not a holiday for me," he exclaimed, making Tyra cringe back into the Doctor unconsciously "Not while I've still got my vone. Now, do as I say and sell."

The Doctor tugged at Tyra's hand gently, pulling her attention back to him "Tyra…"

"I'm fine," she told him quietly, putting on her best smiled that probably looked more like a grimace than anything else, so she dropped it immediately.

"You don't have to be here, you know," he pointed out with a small sigh.

Tyra shrugged a little and looked down, her hair was falling to cover her face "Please… Just leave it."

The Doctor looked at her for a moment and sighed, tugging a couple of strands of hair behind her ear before going to press a kiss to Tyra's forehead, frowning and slightly hurt when she turned her head away "If you're sure." With that, he turned to one of the robot Angels that were all over the room "Evening," he greeted "Passengers fifty-seven and fifty-eight. Terrible memory. Remind me. You would be?"

The Angel turned its head "Information. Heavenly Host supplying tourist information."

"Good," the Doctor hummed "So, tell me – because I'm an idiot – Where are we from?"

"Information," the Host intoned "The Titanic is en route from the planet Sto in the Cassavalian Belt. The purpose of the cruise is to experience primitive cultures."

Tyra grimaced at the 'primitive' as the Doctor blinked a couple of times "Titanic. Who thought of the name?"

"Information. It was chosen as the most famous vessel of the planet Earth."

"Well, it was famous alright," Tyra muttered under her breath.

The Doctor rolled his eyes at her with a small smile "Did they tell you why it was famous?" he asked the Host.

"Information," the Host started again "All designations are chosen by Mister Max Capricorn, president of Max – Max – Max…" The robot twitched, its voice rising in pitch.

Tyra took a step back when the man from earlier rushed over to them just as the Doctor was about to pull out his sonic "It's alright, sir, we can handle this." Two more officers arrived, switching the Host off before carrying it away "Software problem, that's all. Leave it with us, sir, ma'am. Merry Christmas." As he walked away, Tyra could hear him mutter to his colleagues "_That's another one down. What's going on with these things?_"

* * *

A loud crash sounded through the Reception, making a couple of people turn to see what had happened. The man who had been on the phone earlier had bumped into one of the waitresses, making her drop her tray of drinks "For Tov's sake, look where you're going," the man snapped "This jacket's a genuine Earth antique."

"I'm sorry, sir," the waitress mumbled, immediately crouching down to pick up the shards.

"You'll be sorry when it comes off your wages, sweetheart," the man scoffed and shook his head "Staffed by idiots. No wonder Max Capricorn's going down the drain."

As soon as the man had stormed off, the Doctor stooped down to help her gather the rest of the shards "Careful," he warned "There we go."

The waitress looked up at him "Thank you, sir. I can manage."

"I never said you couldn't," the Doctor grinned "I'm the Doctor, by the way. That's Tyra." Tyra looked at them for a moment before quickly looking away when their eyes met. The Doctor's grin dropped, barely suppressing the sigh.

"Astrid, sir," the waitress smiled, her eyes involuntarily trailing over the girl standing behind the Doctor. She looked awful with the angry jagged scar on the side of her face and the clothes that were obviously meant for comfort more than the party. All in all, Astrid wondered what had happened to her "Astrid Peth."

The Doctor tilted his head "Nice to meet you, Astrid Peth. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, sir, ma'am," Astrid nodded to them, letting the man help her up.

"Just the Doctor, not sir," the Doctor told her lightly.

Astrid hummed before wrapping her arms around the tray "Are you enjoying the cruise?"

The Doctor froze for a millisecond before he shrugged "Er, yeah, I suppose. I don't know. It doesn't quite work." He reached out and mindfully wrapped an arm around Tyra's waist, pulling her close "I might not be alone but… You know."

"If I may ask," Astrid started carefully "What happened?"

"Ah, er, it's a long story," the Doctor waved off and changed the subject "What about you? Long way from home, Planet Sto."

Astrid smiled sadly "Doesn't feel that different. I spent three years working at the spaceport diner, travelled all the way here and I'm still waiting on tables."

The Doctor hummed "No shore leave?"

"We're not allowed," Astrid explained "They can't afford the insurance. I just wanted to try it, just once. I used to watch the ships heading out to the stars and I always dreamt of…" She trailed off, her far-off look disappearing "It sounds daft."

"You dreamt of another sky," the Doctor finished knowingly "New sun, new air, new life. A whole universe teeming with life. Why stand still when there's all that life out there?"

Astrid blinked at the accurate description "So, you travel a lot? The two of you?"

"All the time," the Doctor replied "Just for fun." He leaned his chin on top of Tyra's head when she stiffened in his arms, pulling away almost immediately. She still didn't talk a lot and preferred to stay quiet – so different from the way she had been just a year ago… He was quite touchy-feely when it came to her and it was a hard habit to break. While Tyra had gotten more comfortable with having physical contact with him, now, she could barely stand holding his hand outside of the Tardis "Well, that's the plan. Never quite works."

"Must be rich, though," Astrid pointed out.

The Doctor leaned forward, mischief in his eyes "Haven't got a penny. Ty is richer than even I know but no… We're stowaways."

Astrid gasped "Kidding."

"Seriously."

"No."

"Oh, yeah."

Astrid looked at them in surprise "How did you get on board?"

The Doctor shrugged "Accident. I've got this, sort of, ship thing. I was just rebuilding her. Left the defences down. Bumped into the Titanic and here we are. Bit of a party. I thought… Why not? Right, Ty?"

She shrugged and spoke up quietly "I don't know why you're so obsessed with parties if you don't like them."

"I don't not like them," the Doctor shot back immediately, a spark of relief running through him at her comment "I just don't like the dressing up part."

Astrid narrowed her eyes "I should report you."

"Go on, then," the Doctor waved at her.

"I'll get you a drink on the house," Astrid grinned, hurrying off.

The Doctor took that moment to look around. Over at a table nearby, a group of posh people were laughing, pointing at a table where a large woman was sitting in a purple cowboy outfit with a man who was dressed in similar clothing "Come on," he breathed to Tyra when he noticed that instead of pulling away as soon as he had put his arm around her, she was leaning on him more heavily than she should and that worried him. The Tardis had given Tyra painkillers that should have lasted for the whole day but from the hard lines on her face, they were already starting to wear off.

"Just ignore them," the man whispered to the woman as the Doctor and Tyra walked closer to them.

The Doctor pulled out a chair, helping Tyra down gently "Something's tickled them," he mumbled, looking over his shoulder before glancing at Tyra "Can you hear what they're saying?"

She nodded silently, her eyes narrowed on her hands. Tyra hated people like them. They were the worst of the worst. Rich people like them were the ones giving a bad name to all of their circle. She had seen it time and time again and even though she tried to stay out of it, most of the time it didn't work.

The woman looked up at the two of them "They told us it was fancy dress. Very funny, I'm sure."

"They're just picking on us because we haven't paid. We won our tickets in a competition," the man explained.

"I had to name the five husbands of Joofie Crystalle in By the Light of the Asteroid," the woman added "Did you ever watch By the Light of the Asteroid?"

The Doctor frowned a little "Is that the one with the twins?"

"That's it," the woman nodded "Oh, it's marvellous."

"Hm," the Doctor agreed "Do you remember that, Ty? I think Jack was binge-watching it when he joined us." Tyra shrugged lightly, letting her eyes wander away from the table.

The man looked from the Doctor to Tyra "We're not good enough for that lot. They think we should be in steerage."

"Well, can't have that, can we?" the Doctor grinned, subtly pulling out his sonic, aiming it at the champagne bottle in the bucket on their table. The cork popped out almost instantly, spraying the group and their expensive clothes with alcohol.

The woman tried to hide her laughed, looking at the Doctor with wide eyes "Did you do that?"

The Doctor shrugged "Maybe."

"We like you," the woman grinned.

"We do," the man agreed, holding out his hand "I'm Morvin Van Hoff. This is my good woman, Foon."

"Foon," the Doctor repeated, shaking their hands "Hello, I'm the Doctor. This is Tyra. Don't mind her too much. She isn't well at the moment."

Foon sent Tyra a small smile before letting out a small laugh "Oh, I'm going to need a Doctor, time I've finished with that buffet. Have a buffalo wing." She held out the platter to them They must be enormous, these buffalo. So many wings."

"Are you hungry?" the Doctor asked Tyra "You haven't eaten in a while…"

She shook her head and grimaced at the smell of the meat "I'm not hungry."

When the tannoy chimed for a second time, Tyra twitched, glaring at the nearest speaker in annoyance. She hated all the sounds around her. For a year, she had heard barely anything but the sound of Mikael and the humming of the ship "_Attention, please. Shore leave tickets Red Six Seven now activated. Red Six Seven._"

"Red Six Seven," Foon exclaimed "That's us." She stopped, looking at the Doctor "Are you Red Six Seven?"

He shrugged "Might as well be."

"Come on, then," Morvin waved "We're going to Earth."

The Doctor held his arm out for Tyra again, intent on letting her lean on him again. She stared at his arm for a moment before clenching her fingers around the edge of the table, carefully trying to get up. It was a bit of a fight and she was a little unsteady when she was finally upright.

The fact that she was barely talking was starting to worry the Doctor more and more. He had known that she wasn't ready yet and still he decided to come out, knowing that she wouldn't let him go alone. Even after all this, Tyra felt the need to protect him which made a sharp stab of pain shoot through his chest. After all that has happened, she still cared so much and he couldn't do anything to help her. She didn't accept his help… She barely accepted that Damon and Jack were trying to help her. It had been enough to coax her out of her shell at least a little.

A man in a tweed suit was holding up a sign, calling the people over "Red Six Seven. Red Six Seven. This way, fast as you can."

Astrid cleared her throat from next to the Doctor "I got you those drinks."

"And I got you a treat. Come on," the Doctor grinned, pulling her and Tyra along.

"Red Six Seven departing shortly," the man in the tweed suit called out.

The Doctor went to show him his psychic paper to get bracelets for the three of them, Tyra grabbed his arm and shook her head "Get two. I'll stay here," she said under her breath "Take Astrid down and show her Earth. I'll be fine."

"Red Six Seven plus one," the Doctor said, holding up his psychic paper.

"Quickly, sir, please," the man hurried "And take two teleport bracelets if you would."

The Doctor grabbed them and walked over to where Astrid was looking around nervously "I'll get the sack."

"Brand new sky," the Doctor pointed out.

Astrid swallowed and took the teleport "Aren't you going to go?"

Tyra shook her head, rubbing a hand down the side of her face gently "You go. It's nothing I haven't seen before."

"Thank you."

The man at the front clapped his hands to get people's attention "To repeat, I am Mister Copper, the ship's historian and I shall be taking you to old London town in the country of UK, rules over by good King Wenceslas. Now, Human beings worship the great god Santa, a creature with fearsome claws and his wife Mary. And every Christmas Eve, the people of UK go to war with the country of Turkey. They then eat the Turkey people for Christmas dinner like savages."

The Doctor gaped at the man, his head snapping around when Tyra let out a small laugh "Yeah, you would find that funny," he mumbled before turning back to Mr Copper "Excuse me. Sorry, sorry, but – er – where did you get all this from?"

"Well," Mr Copper straightened up "I have a first-class degree in Earthonomics. Now, stand by."

The little red alien they had seen earlier ran up, waving a ticket "And me! And me! Red Six Seven."

"Well, take a bracelet, please, sir," Mr Copper nodded.

"But – er – hold on, hold on," the Doctor rambled "What was your name?"

"Bannakaffalatta," the red alien introduced himself.

The Doctor nodded in recognition "Okay, Bannakaffalatta. But it's Christmas Eve down there. Late night shopping, tons of people. He's like a talking conker. No offence but you'll cause a riot because the streets are going to be packer with shoppers and parties and…" As he was talking, the group was suddenly teleported out, making Tyra take a couple of steps away from where the group had been. She looked around nervously, unsure what to do now that she didn't have the Doctor to talk for her.

It was so much easier to let him talk, especially when she felt like just crawling into bed and never come back out. The Doctor had worked hard on just getting her to get up most of the days, everything else was still a bit out there and Tyra felt like she was a burden on him. A part of her hated herself even more for acting the way she did. The Doctor had gone through hell as well as her but he didn't act like that. It made her feel… weak. Jack had been off better than her as well which didn't help things either.

"Hello," a voice spoke up close to her. Tyra flinched in surprise, looking up at the man who had spoken "I saw you standing here… I haven't seen you on board before."

Tyra shifted and shrugged awkwardly "Not been around."

"I'm Josh," he said, holding out his hand for her to shake.

"Tyra," she mumbled, drawing her hands back into the sleeves of her long-sleeved shirt. She didn't want to talk to him… She just wanted the Doctor to come back and get away from here.

"Are you here by yourself?" Josh tried again unsuccessfully to get the girl to talk. She was cute and there was no way he would let this chance slip through his fingers. The other women were all so… ordinary or taken. He had gotten into more than one almost fight with some of the men on board when he tried to charm their wives into his bed. The scars on Tyra's face only made her more mysterious and made him want her more. The thought of adding to the collection of scars that he was sure were hiding beneath her clothing made him shift uncomfortably as his pants got tighter.

Tyra shook her head and turned away from him to watch the place the Doctor had disappeared in earlier. She didn't like the man. There was something about him that gave her the creeps "_He wants to fuck you,_" Mikael's voice jeered in her mind "_That's all someone as damaged as you is good for, little haukr. Not that anyone is going to willingly touch you once I'm through with you._"

When a hand grasped her upper arm, she reacted before she knew what was happening. She had grabbed the man's wrist, twisting his arm onto his back before she let go as if burnt, backing away. She jumped when she heard the Doctor's voice as he and Astrid were teleported back on board of the Titanic. He whirled around in exasperation "I was in mid-sentence."

Mr Copper checked the computer flustered "Yes, I'm sorry about that. A bit of a problem. If I could have your bracelets."

"Apologies, ladies and gentlemen, and Bannakaffalatta," the Steward told them "We seem to have suffered a slight power fluctuation. If you'd like to return to the festivities. And on behalf of Max Capricorn Cruiseliners, free drinks will be provided."

"Thank you," Foon inclined her head.

Astrid bounced on the balls off her feet as Tyra rejoined the two of them "That was the best," she exclaimed before quickly quieting down "The best!"

The Doctor looked down at Tyra when Astrid hurried off "What sort of power fluctuation?" he mumbled before the expression on Tyra's face registered "What happened?" He tilted her head up gently, making her meet his eyes.

Tyra shrugged "Nothing."

"Ty, don't lie to me," the Doctor sighed "Did anyone say anything?"

"It's nothing, Doctor," Tyra mumbled "You were worried about a power fluctuation."

The Doctor hesitated for a moment before he groaned, heading over to a framed screen that was playing a video loop of Max Capricorn "We're going to talk about this. I don't like not knowing how you're feeling."

Tyra nodded, her back against the wall as she just watched the people around her again as her mind wandered. She had found that there were more and more memories streaming to the front of her mind whenever she 'did something wrong'. It felt like she was punishing herself by practically having Mikael in her mind. Not that she had told anyone about the fact… It was bad enough that the Doctor had seen what Mikael did to her. She didn't need to bother him with anything else.

"You good?" When Tyra didn't reply, the Doctor looked up from the screen, seeing her shivering with her eyes unfocused "Tyra? Dammit." He put away his sonic and reached out, stopping just before he touched her "Come on, love, can you come back to me?" The Doctor ran a hand through his hair and just started babbling about whatever came to mind until he saw Tyra's blink "Hey, are you back? Ty, can I touch you?"

"What…?" Tyra broke off, blinking rapidly. She turned her head to face the Doctor "Doc?"

"You're good," he murmured, pulling her into his arms. As soon as his touch registered, Tyra stiffened but made no move to pull away. She needed him and his contact right now… His smell surrounding her made the memories fade to a manageable level "You're going to be just fine."

The Doctor turned back to the screen, making sure to keep an eye on Tyra while also giving her the space to pull herself together again without anyone openly watching her. He opened the frame and changed some settings until the screen was showing the Titanic with the immediate surroundings. He frowned when he saw the shields were offline "What the…?" Tyra looked at him quizzically, watching as he walked over to the nearest porthole before coming back almost immediately, going back to work on the frame for a moment "Is that the bridge?" he asked "I need to talk to the Captain. You've got a meteoroid storm coming in west zero by north two."

"_Who is this?_" the Captain demanded.

The Doctor rolled his eyes in exasperation "Never mind that, your shields are down. Check your scanners, Captain. You've got meteoroids coming in and now shielding."

"_You have no authorisation,_" the Captain shot back, his voice growing angrier "_You will clear the comms at once._"

"Yeah? Just look starboard," the Doctor snapped.

The Steward was walking up to the Doctor, his eyes narrowed "Come with me, sir."

The Doctor was being herded away with Tyra standing by, unsure of what to do. It was only when one of the guards with the Steward went to grab her that she moved. She twisted his arm behind his back the way she had done with Josh earlier, shoving the man she was holding into two more guards who had moved to help "Stop," the Doctor snapped "If you keep attacking her, you'll end up dead. Just… Just stop."

"Stand down," the Steward snapped at his men, pointing his gun at the girl.

"No," the Doctor bit out, glaring at him. He ripped himself out of the Steward's grip and slowly walked towards Tyra "Ty… Ty, breathe, alright? Just listen to my voice and breathe. They aren't going to touch you anymore. I promise." After she had relaxed enough to meet his eyes, he whirled around, glaring at the Steward again "Are you happy now? Attacking someone with PTSD?"

The Steward looked at the girl – really looked at her for the first time – and averted his eyes. He had seen a lot of men with PTSD in his time in security and he had always through himself to be fair and understanding. Now here he was, pointing a gun at a girl "My apologies," he mumbled, looking embarrassed.

"Are you ready to listen to me now?" the Doctor asked, crossing his arms "You've got a rock storm heading for this ship and the shields are down."

Since they held the attention of almost the entire reception, a couple of people glanced out of the portholes, gasping when they saw that the Doctor was right "He's right. Oh, he's right…"

While that was going on, the man who had bumped into Astrid earlier, looked at the screen the Doctor had been working on earlier, his eyes widening at the information "Oi! Steward! I'm telling you, the shields are down."

"Not here," the Steward hissed, looking around nervously "Ladies and gentlemen, I'm sure the bridge is working on bringing the shields back up. There is no reason to panic. Please… Enjoy the party."

* * *

The meteors slammed into the ship causing massive destruction and chaos while the Steward was still arguing with the group of people who had followed the Doctor that the bridge had everything under control.

As everyone was getting thrown around, the Doctor grabbed Tyra, curling himself over her to protect her already injured body from even more harm as an explosion went off near them, throwing them all to the floor.

"Are you okay?" the Doctor asked, getting off Tyra immediately as the shaking stopped. She nodded with slightly blank eyes, causing the Doctor to shake his head "I really need you to talk to me for a moment. Are you alright?"

"Fine," Tyra mumbled, blinking to focus her eyes on him "I'm okay."

"Can you get up or do you need a minute?"

Tyra shook her head and reached out to grab ahold of the wall. She hissed when her fingers slipped and she landed back on the ground. The Doctor reached out to pull her to her feet, a small smile playing on his face as she took his hand almost as soon as he had reached out.

"Ev – Everyone… Ladies and gentlemen, Bannakaffalatta, I must apologise on behalf of Max Capricorn Cruiseliners. We seem to have had a small collision," the Steward stuttered apologetically.

Morvin let out a snort "Small."

"Do you know how much I paid for my ticket?" the man in the expensive clothes grumbled.

The Steward looked at them a little shaken "If I could have silence, ladies, gentlemen. Please. Quiet! Thank you. I'm sure Max Capricorn Cruiseliners will be able to reimburse you for any inconvenience but first I would point out that we're very much alive."

"Doctor," Astrid called out, crouching in front of Mr Copper who had a bad cut on his head.

The Doctor quickly joined them "Are you alright?"

"She is, after all, a fine, sturdy ship," the Steward continued, ignoring their talking "If you could all stay here while I ascertain the exact nature of the situation." He walked over to a nearby hatch.

"Don't open it," the Doctor called out in alarm. The Steward had already opened the hatch and was promptly sucked out. The Doctor quickly jumped over to Tyra, grabbing her around the waist again, as he held on to the nearest fixed object with the others doing the same "Ty, I need you to hold on to me." He felt her arms around him as he struggled to get over to the Comms, using his sonic to replace the shield.

"_Oxygen shield stabilised,_" the tannoy said.

The Doctor quickly and efficiently checked over Tyra before turning to the others "Everyone alright? Astrid?"

"Yeah," Astrid nodded.

"Foon? Morvin? Mister Copper? Bannakaffalatta?"

"Yes," Bannakaffalatta replied.

The Doctor nodded to the man with the expensive suit "You, what was your name?"

The man straightened up "Rickston Slade."

"You alright?"

"No thanks to that idiot," Slade huffed, glaring at the spot the Steward had been in.

Astrid shot him a look "The steward just died," she reminded him.

Slade shrugged "Then he's a dead idiot."

"Alright," the Doctor called out before they could start arguing "Calm down. Just stay still, all of you. Hold on."

Astrid bit her lip "What happened? How come the shields were down?"

The Doctor shook his head pensively "I don't think it was an accident." He looked out of the hatchway and the hole in the side of the ship, seeing the debris and bodies floating around.

"How many dead?" Astrid whispered, her eyes trailing the motion of one of the bodies.

"We're alive," the Doctor replied "Just focus on that. I will get you out of here, Astrid, I promise." When she didn't react, he grabbed her shoulder "Look at me. I promise. Good. Now, if we can get to Reception, I've got a spaceship tucked away." He glanced over at Tyra who was leaning against the wall with a grimace on her face "I should have brought you there immediately… We can all get on board and… Oh."

"What is it?" Astrid asked, her voice changing to worried instantly "What's wrong?"

"That's my ship over there," the Doctor mumbled, nodding to the blue box that was descending towards the Earth.

"Where?"

The Doctor pointed to the Tardis "There. That box. That little blue box."

Astrid raised her eyebrows "That's a spaceship?"

"Oi," the Doctor yelped "Don't knock it."

"It's a bit small," she shrugged sheepishly.

The Doctor grinned "A bit distant. Trouble is, once it's set adrift, it's programmed to lock onto the nearest centre of gravity and that would be the Earth." He looked around before hurrying over to a speaking tube that was fixed to the wall "Deck twenty-two to the bridge. Deck twenty-two to the bridge. Is there anyone there?"

"_This is the bridge,_" a weary voice answered a minute later.

"Oh hello, sailor. Good to hear you," the Doctor said, his shoulders relaxing a little "What's the situation up there?"

"_We've got air,_" the man said "_The oxygen field is holding, but the Captain, he's dead. He did it. I watched while he took down the shields. There was nothing I could do. I tried. I did try._"

The Doctor closed his eyes for a moment before his gaze trailed to Tyra "Alright," he soothed "Just stay calm. Tell me your name. What's your name?"

"_Midshipman Frame,_" he said softly.

"Nice to meet you, sir," the Doctor nodded before a frown crossed his face "What's the state of the engines?"

Frame grimaced, looking at the engine feed that was just out of his reach "_They're… Er. Hold on." _He grabbed ahold of a piece of equipment to steady himself before moving over to the engine feed with a groan of pain "_Oh!_"

"Have you been injured?" the Doctor asked, worried for the sailor.

Frame gritted his teeth against the pain in his side "_I'm alright. Oh, my Vot…_" He checked the readings again before swallowing past the lump in his throat "_They're cycling down._"

The Doctor raised a hand to rub his forehead "That's a nuclear storm drive, yes?"

"_Yeah._"

"The moment they're gone we lose orbit," the Doctor mumbled.

Frame hissed "_The planet,_" he whispered worriedly, glancing out of the window at the Earth.

"Oh, yes," the Doctor nodded "If we hit the planet, the nuclear storm explodes and wipes out life on Earth. Midshipman, I need you to fire up the engine containment field and feed it back into the core."

"_This is never going to work,_" Frame shook his head, moving to do as the man asked nevertheless.

"Trust me," the Doctor offered "It will keep the engines going until I can get to the bridge."

Frame stared out of the window blankly "_We're going to die._"

Mister Copper cleared his throat "Are you saying someone's done this on purpose?"

"We are…" Foon breathed, tears in her eyes "We're going to die."

Astrid shook her head "We're just a cruise ship."

The Doctor shot them all exasperated looks but understood where they were coming from. The only reason he was still calm-ish was because this wasn't the first time he had been in a situation similar to this. A quick glance at Tyra revealed her staring at a wall, looking as if she was in her own world again. Once again, he cursed himself for actually leaving the Tardis. He was glad that he could help here but it still didn't make it better that she was exhausting herself. Her wounds were barely starting to heal due to all the White Oak and vervain that had been used on her "Okay, okay," he called out over the people "Shush, shush, shush, shush. First things first. One, we are going to climb through this ship. B… No, two, we're going to reach the bridge. Three – or C – we're going to save the Titanic. And, coming in a very low four – or D – or that little iv in brackets they use in footnotes, why. Right then, follow me."

"Hand on a minute," Slade snapped, looking at the Doctor with his arms crossed "Who put you in charge and who the hell are you anyway?"

The Doctor stopped and looked at the Humans who were all looking at him now "I'm the Doctor," he started, narrowing his eyes on them "I'm a Time Lord. I'm from the planet Gallifrey in the constellation of Kasterborous. I'm nine hundred and three years old and I'm the man who's going to save your lives and all six billion people on the planet below." He looked at them through narrowed eyes and reached out for Tyra's hand "You got a problem with that?"

"No," Slade swallowed, his eyes wide.

The Doctor grinned "In that case, allons-y!"

* * *

The group made their way through the destroyed ship, careful not to injure themselves. Tyra had taken to walk a bit behind the group, stumbling more than once when her legs were starting to give out on her or she moved the wrong way. Thankfully, none of the others paid too much attention to her, all preoccupied with their own thoughts. The only one who glanced back at her nearly constantly was the Doctor but whenever she felt his gaze on her, she pushed the pain back as well as she could manage, hoping against hope that he wasn't seeing how badly she was feeling.

She hated to worry him, hated having him hover over her but a part of her liked the fact that he was still with her. That he hadn't just dropped her the moment she became a burden more than help. Tyra hated the useless feeling that she had whenever she came out of a flashback or whenever she panicked at the thought of situations that made her uncomfortable. It was fascinating how many things could change in just a year…

Sometimes she wondered whether she would have been as bad as she was if the Master hadn't brought in… Mikael. While the Master was sadistic and had had his own fun with Jack, she was sure that it wouldn't have been as bad as it had been with Mikael. Her father – not that she saw him as that anymore. She didn't have parents anymore, only her siblings, friends and the Doctor. They were the only family that she had – knew exactly how to break her. He had shown that time and time again, making sure to make her life hell time and time again.

Up ahead, the Doctor pushed open a bulkhead door "Careful," he called back, clearing a bit of the rubble "Follow me."

Mister Copper let out a small chuckle, drawing all the eyes to him "Rather ironic," he started "But this is very much in the spirit of Christmas. It's a festival of violence. They say that Human beings only survive depending on whether they've been good or bad. It's barbaric."

"Actually," the Doctor grimaced "That's very much not true. Christmas is a time of – of peace and thanksgiving and what am I on about?" He looked at Tyra and shrugged helplessly "Our Christmases are always like that, aren't they, Ty?" He turned back to the front, seeing a Host underneath some metal plates that had fallen in the staircase "We've got a Host. Strength of ten. If we can mend it, we can use it to fix the rubble."

Morvin raised his hand a little "We can do robotics. Both of us." He gestured between himself and Foon.

"We work on the milk market back on Sto," Foon added "It's all robot staff."

The Doctor nodded "See if you can get it working." He turned to the others before walking further up the stairs "Let's have a look."

"It's blocked," Astrid remarked, looking at the metal that had fallen to block the path almost completely, leaving only the smallest gap.

The Doctor hummed "So, what do we do?"

Astrid looked at him "We shift it."

He grinned "That's the attitude. Rickston, Mister Copper and you, Bannakaffalatta." The Doctor stopped for a moment, turning to look at the red alien "Look, can I just call you Banna? It's going to save a lot of time."

Bannakaffalatta crossed his arms stubbornly "No. Bannakaffalatta."

The Doctor barely stopped himself from rolling his eyes even if he was a little amused at his insistence "Alright then, Bannakaffalatta. There's a gap in the middle. See if you can get through."

Bannakaffalatta nodded "Easy. Good."

As he made his way through, the ship shook, causing more debris to shift and fall "This whole thing could come crashing down any minute," Slade pointed out, looking at the ceiling worriedly.

"Oh, Rickston, I forgot," the Doctor said, looking over at the man "Did you get that message?"

Slade frowned "No. What message?"

"Shut up. Just be quiet for once, alright?"

Bannakaffalatta called out from the other side of the rubble "Bannakaffalatta made it."

Astrid looked at the gap "I'm small enough, I can get through."

"Careful," the Doctor told her.

"I'm fine," she smiled before moving to crawl through the gap.

Slade leaned forward, peaking into the gap "Thing is, how are Mister and Mrs Fatso going to get through that gap?"

"We make the gap bigger," the Doctor pointed out.

"I can do it," Tyra spoke up, walking closer slowly.

The Doctor looked at her and shook his head "Tyra, no."

"_Hey, hey,_" Morvin soothed "_Come on, sweetheart. Don't listen to him._"

"Tyra, yes," she told him, her head turning back to where Foon and Morvin were working on the Host.

"_No,_" Foon sniffed "_But it's all my fault, though. The tickets._"

Morvin shook his head "_We won them fair and square._"

"_I know. I never told you,_" Foon breathed "_I dialled the competition line five thousand times. That's five thousand credits. I might as well have paid for the tickets. I've been hiding the vone bill for months now._"

"_Five thousand credits?_" Morvin asked, his voice a little faint "_You spent five thousand credits?_"

Foon closed her eyes and turned her head away "_Don't hate me._" Morvin let out a small laugh, causing Foon to frown "_What's so funny?_"

"_Five thousand?_"

The Doctor grabbed a hold of Tyra's shoulders, causing her to stiffen and try to pull away from his grip "Tyra, I won't let you do this."

"Tough," she mumbled, brushing his hands away. She didn't want to be useless and even if her strength was barely there, she was still stronger than any of the others here. Why wouldn't she try to help? It was what the Doctor had wanted her to do before… So why wouldn't she try and help now? She might not care about Slade but she could admit that the others were nice. Not enough for her to like them but… She didn't like many people anymore.

Slade scoffed when he heard Morvin and Foon's laughter drifting toward them "What happened?" he asked with a sneer "Did they find a doughnut?"

"I can clear it from this side," Astrid called through the gap "Just tell me if it starts moving."

Tyra got to her knees awkwardly before looking at the rubble more closely. There were a couple of pieces that would be relatively easy to shift and others that would make the whole thing crash down. Tyra positioned her hands on the part above her head and pushed it upwards "Go."

The Doctor looked at her for a moment before turning to Mister Copper and Slade "Try to get through. Make sure to help Astrid and Bannakaffalatta to shift as much as you can but be careful." He looked at Tyra, seeing the expression on her face "How long can you hold this?"

"Hurry."

"Almost done," Morvin called out, having heard part of their conversation.

"Good, good, good." The Doctor moved toward a Comms system "Mister Frame, how's things?"

Frame swallowed, trying not to think about what he just heard "_Doctor, I've got life signs all over the ship but they're going out one by one._"

The Doctor frowned "What is it? Are they losing air?"

"_No._ _One of them said it's the Host. It's something to do with the Host._"

"It's working," Morvin shouted as soon as the Host started chanting.

The Doctor ran over to them "Turn it off."

"I can't, Doctor." Foon breathed, staring at the Host with fear in her eyes.

"Kill. Kill. Kill," the Host chanted.

"Go," the Doctor told Foon as the Host grabbed hold of Morvin's throat "Double deadlock… Dammit…" He shook his head and pulled the Host's hand off Morvin's throat "Quickly, go upstairs."

Foon looked at Morvin and grabbed his hand "Run, darling, run!"

"Information. Kill," the Host said "Kill. Kill. Kill. Kill."

"Tyra, get them through," the Doctor called out.

Foon stared at the small gap and shook her head "I'll never get through there."

Tyra looked at her before shifting, an expression of pain flashing across her face as she put more pressure on the debris "Try. Hurry." It wouldn't hold much longer. Not only was her strength fading fast but the rubble above was shifting and could fall any moment.

Foon made her way through the gap. It was a bit tight toward the end but with a bit of help from Astrid and Mister Copper, she got through easily.

"Morvin, get through," the Doctor said as the Host was hot on his heels.

"Doctor, he's stuck," Astrid called out, seeing him try to move. Tyra gave one last push, making the debris loosen up around Morvin just enough for him to pop through the hole "That's it. We've got you. Doctor, come on, get through."

The Doctor grabbed Tyra, pushing her through the gap before crawling through after her. Just before he was through, he turned back to the Host that was following them "Information override. You will tell me the point of origin of your command structure."

"I can't hold it," Mister Copper panted, trying to hold onto the debris. Tyra was laying on the ground where she had fallen, her eyes closed as she tried to breathe through the agony that was shooting through her body.

"Information," the Host dinged "Deck thirty-one."

"Thank you," the Doctor grinned, sliding through the gap "Thank you." He looked to Mister Copper "Let go." Mister Copper let the bar go, causing it to smash down on the Host's head, crushing it completely. The Doctor turned around to face the group, seeing Tyra still on the ground. He cursed under his breath and fell to his knees next to her "Ty, I told you not to do it… Why don't you ever listen?"

"I could say the same thing," she mumbled, rising to her knees, brushing his hands off again "I'm fine. I – Just needed a moment."

The Doctor looked at her sadly before he nodded "Okay. Are you fine to keep going?" Tyra looked at the other people, uncomfortable with being the centre of attention.

* * *

"Morvin, look," Foon exclaimed, rushing towards a trolley of sandwiches nearby "Food."

Slade rolled his eyes "Oh, great. Someone's happy."

Morvin shot him a glare "Don't have any, then." He looked to Tyra who was leaning against the wall close to them. She had saved them both by holding the debris even if she seemed to have hurt herself more doing it "Do you want one?"

Tyra grimaced and shook her head, the smell of the food was making her sick "Thanks," she mumbled before leaning her head back against the wall.

"Mister Frame, are you still there?" the Doctor asked into a Comms station.

Frame answered almost immediately "_Yes, sir. But I've got Host outside. I've sealed the door._"

"They've been programmed to kill," the Doctor explained "Why would anyone do that?"

"_That's not the only problem, Doctor,_" Frame stared hesitatingly "_I had to use a maximum deadlock on the door, which means no one can get in. I'm sealed off. Even if you can fix the Titanic… You can't get to the bridge._"

The Doctor ran a hand through his hair and sighed "Yeah, right, fine… One problem at a time. What's on deck thirty-one?"

Frame frowned "_Er, that's down below. It's nothing._" He scratched his head "_It's just the Host storage deck. That's where we keep the robots._"

"Well, what's that?" the Doctor asked, referring to something that made no sense to him "Do you see that panel? Black. It's registering nothing. No power, no heat, no light."

"_I've never seen it before,_" Frame shook his head.

The Doctor furrowed his brow "One hundred percent shielded. What's down there?"

Frame stared at it "_I'll try intensifying the scanner._"

"Let me know if you find anything," the Doctor said "And keep those engines going."

Astrid walked over to him, handing over a plate with a couple of sandwiches on them "Saved you some. You might be a Time King from Gaddabee but you need to eat."

The Doctor grimaced at her butchering of his race and planet "Yeah, thanks."

"So, you look good for nine hundred and three," she told him.

The Doctor let out a small laugh before heading over to where Tyra was sitting against the wall with the plate in his hand. He knew that she hadn't eaten and didn't want to "You should see me in the mornings," he told Astrid before holding the plate out to Tyra "I know you don't want to eat but you have to at least get something into you."

Tyra shook her head, pushing his hand away from her "I can't."

"Ty, you used up a lot of energy. Energy that you don't have at the moment. Please…" He sat down next to her, still holding the plate.

"Doctor," Mister Copper called out "It must be well past midnight. Earth time. Christmas Day."

The Doctor looked over at him and smiled lightly "So it is. Merry Christmas."

Astrid sank down on the ground by them "This Christmas thing, what's it all about?"

"Long story," the Doctor told her "I should know, I was there. I got the last room."

Mister Copper looked out of the window "But if the planet's waking up, can't we signal them? They could send up a rocket or something."

The Doctor shook his head "They don't have spaceships."

"No, I read about it," Mister Copper argued "They have shuttles. Space shuttles."

"Mister Copper, this degree in Earthonomics, where's it from?" the Doctor asked hesitatingly.

"Honestly?"

The Doctor nodded and leaned forward "Just between us."

Mister Copper sank down on a chair with an embarrassed look on his face "Mrs Golightly's Happy Travelling University and Dry Cleaners."

Astrid looked at him with wide eyes "You… Yea lied to the company to get the job?"

"I wasted my life on Sto," he pointed out "I was a travelling salesman, always on the road and I reached retirement with nothing to show for it. Not even a home. And Earth sounded so exotic."

"Hmm," the Doctor mumbled, nudging Tyra lightly "I suppose it is, yeah."

"How come you know it so well?" Astrid questioned curiously.

The Doctor looked at her "I was sort of… a few years ago… I was sort of made, well, sort of homeless and, er, there was the Earth. And then I met Tyra and well…"

Mister Copper let out a sigh "The thing is, if we survive this, there'll be police and all sort of investigations. Now the minimum penalty for space lane fraud is ten years in jail. I'm an old man." He looked up at them "I won't survive ten years."

A loud bang startled them as the Doctor jumped up "A Host." He pulled Tyra up, once again trying to ignore the pang in his hearts when she flinched "Move! Come on." He led them through the next bulkhead to a catwalk that had a narrow beam forming a walkway across a massive empty space in the middle of the ship.

Slade looked at it nervously "Is that the only way across?"

"On the other hand, it is a way across," the Doctor pointed out.

Astrid glanced down "The engines are open."

The Doctor nodded "Nuclear storm drive. As soon as it stops, the Titanic falls."

"But that thing," Morvin started, glancing at the beam uncomfortably "It'll never take out weight."

Slade looked at him "You're going last, mate."

"It's nitrofin metal," the Doctor explained "It's stronger than it looks."

Morvin shook his head "All the same. Rickston is right. Me and Foon should…" He took a step forward. Tyra's head snapped up at the sound the floor was making and just as the metal under Morvin's foot was starting to give away, she grabbed him by the back of the shirt, shoving him back towards the door a little rougher than she had wanted.

"Morvin," Foon gasped, hurrying over to where he had landed against the wall.

"I told you, I told you," Slade said, backing away from the edge.

Mister Copper shot him an annoyed glare "Just shut up. Shut up!"

Foon looked over at Tyra who was staring down into the storm drive with a zoned-out look on her face "You saved him. Thank you."

Mister Copper glanced at the door when the banging came closer and closer "Doctor, I rather think that those things have got our scent."

Slade shook his head "I'm not waiting."

"Careful," the Doctor called out, checking on Morvin "Take it slowly."

As soon as he was on the beam, the ship shook, causing Slade to fall onto the beam, holding on for dear life "Oh, Vot, help me."

"You're okay," the Doctor said "A step at a time. Come on, you can di it."

"_Kill. Kill. Kill._"

"They're getting closer," Mister Copper swallowed.

The Doctor looked at the doors "Seal us in."

Mister Copper looked at him incredulously "You're leaving us trapped, wouldn't you say?"

"Never say trapped," the Doctor shook his head "Just inconveniently circumstanced."

"Oh."

"I'm okay," Slade called out from the other side "Yes. Oh, yes! Who's good?"

The Doctor turned to the others after telling Morvin that the worst he got were a couple of bruises from landing on the ground and that he had been lucky "Bannakaffalatta, you go next."

Bannakaffalatta nodded and started across "Bannakaffalatta small."

"Slowly," the Doctor called out after him when the red alien went a little too fast for his liking.

Behind them, the Host were hammering on the bulkhead door, causing Tyra to shiver. The noise was driving her up the wall. It was too loud, there were too many people. She didn't know what to do. She pressed her eyes close, walking backwards against a wall. She gritted her teeth, trying to push everything back. There was no time to panic now… Just – She could hold on. She could get through this and then she could have her break down.

Mister Copper shot the door a scared look "They've found us."

"Astrid, get across right now," the Doctor said, shooing her towards the beam "Mister Copper if you could. We can't wait."

"No, but we…"

"Don't argue," the Doctor snapped "Tyra, you got next. Foon, you and Morvin have got to get across right now."

Slade tried to open the door "Doctor? The door's locked," he shouted over his shoulder "I can't open the door. We need the whirling key thing of yours."

The Doctor looked at the other side of the room for a moment "Tyra, take this." He handed the screwdriver to her since she was still within his reach, having barely stepped onto the bridge "I'm going to help Foon and Morvin."

"Too many people," Bannakaffalatta shouted as the bridge gave a low groan.

"Oi, don't get spiky with me," the Doctor snorted "Keep going."

Bannakaffalatta got across the weakest bit in the middle of the bridge, closely followed by Astrid "It's going to fall," she exclaimed.

The Doctor shook his head "It's just settling. Keep going."

Astrid stopped where she was and turned around carefully when everything went quiet all of a sudden "They've stopped," she noted.

"Gone away?" Bannakaffalatta asked, tilting his head in confusion.

The Doctor frowned "Why would they give up?"

"Never mind that," Slade cried out in exasperation "Keep coming."

"Where have they gone?" the Doctor asked "Where are the Host?"

Mister Copper looked up "I'm afraid we've forgotten the traditions of Christmas. That angels have wings."

The Host glided down to surround them, removing their haloes slowly "Information. Kill."

"Arm yourself," the Doctor cursed "All of you."

Everyone grabbed a bit of pipe to use it as bat, sending the haloes flying. One of the flying haloes caught Tyra in the side as another hit the Doctor's arm. Mister Copper barely managed to grab ahold of the girl as she swayed on the bridge.

Astrid shook her head, one of the haloes barely missing her "I can't," she breathed.

"Bannakaffalatta stop," the red alien said "Bannakaffalatta proud. Bannakaffalatta cyborg." He lifted his shirt, sending out an energy pulse that short-circuited the Host, making them plummet down into the engine core.

"Electromagnetic pulse took out the robotics," the Doctor breathed a sigh of relief "Oh, Bannakaffalatta, that was brilliant."

"He used up all his power," Astrid said as Bannakaffalatta collapsed.

The red alien looked up at her "Did good?"

"You saved our lives," Astrid told him quietly.

Bannakaffalatta smiled "Bannakaffalatta happy."

Astrid sniffed "We can recharge you. Get you to a powerpoint and just plug you in."

"Too late."

"No, but you got to get me that drink, remember?" Astrid whispered, her hands on his chest.

Bannakaffalatta raised his hand to touch her cheek "Pretty girl." With that, he lost consciousness, causing Astrid to let out a low sob.

She went to fasten his shirt but stopped when Mister Copper reached out for the component in Bannakaffalatta's chest "Leave him alone," she snapped at the man.

"It's the EMP transmitter," Mister Copper explained quietly "He'd want us to use it. I used to sell these things. They'd always give me a bed for the night in the cyborg caravans. They're good people but if we can charge it, we can use it as a weapon against the rest of the Host. Bannakaffalatta might have saved us all."

Slade scoffed "Do you think? Try telling him that." He gestured to the Host that had landed close to where the Doctor was standing with Foon and Morvin.

"Information. Reboot."

"Use the EMP!" Slade shouted.

Mister Copper shook his head "It's dead. It's dead."

Astrid got up, looking it over "It's got to have emergency…"

"No, no, no," the Doctor held up his hands "Override loophole. Security protocol ten. Six six six. Er… twenty-two, four, five, six, seven, eight. I don't know, forty-two? Er… One!"

The Host stopped "Information. State request."

"Good," the Doctor relaxed for the moment "Right. You've been ordered to kill the survivors, but why?"

"Information. No witnesses."

The Doctor frowned "But this ship's going to fall on the Earth and kill everyone. The Human race has nothing to do with the Titanic, so that contravenes your orders, yes?"

"Information. Incorrect."

"But why do you want to destroy the Earth?" the Doctor asked, not understanding what they wanted.

"Information. It is the plan."

"What plan?"

The Host tilted its head "Information. Protocol grants you only three questions. These three questions have been used."

The Doctor huffed "Well, you could have warned me."

"Information. Now you will die." As the Host raised its halo again, a lasso from behind stopped it in its tracks.

"Foon," Morvin exclaimed, trying to reach out for her.

She looked at him with sad eyes "I'm sorry."

Tyra looked at them before flashing over, grabbing the rope from Foon before she could tie it around herself, wrapping it around a heavy piece of ceiling that had fallen. She shoved it down into the engine with a bit of difficulty, stumbling back.

"Thank you," Morvin breathed for what felt like the hundredth time that day. He couldn't thank the girl. She had saved them time and time again without asking for anything in return.

The Doctor steadied Tyra, tilting her head up with two fingers underneath her chin. His forehead came to rest against hers for a moment "Stop putting yourself in danger," he whispered roughly.

Tyra squirmed out of his embrace, her arms coming up to wrap around herself. She didn't know how much longer she could hold out. She was exhausted and all the heartbeats and voices and sounds in the room were starting to overwhelm her. They were deafening and after a year of near solitary confinement, she hated the noises. She hated complete silence but the noises were so much worse. They made the voice in her head become louder and louder to make sure that she would still hear it.

* * *

The Doctor looked at the group in front of him, glad that they were still almost the same number as before. He felt guilty that Bannakaffalatta had died but at least the others had managed to pull through thanks to Tyra "Right. Get yourself up to Reception One. Once you're there, Mr Copper, you've got staff access to the computer." He paused for a moment, looking down at Tyra. I

She was leaning against the wall of the corridor heavily, exhaustion slowly overwhelming her along with the panic and fear. Running around the ship and fighting the Host hadn't been beneficial especially since some of her wounds had reopened when she had used her strength. The first had opened when she shifted the rubble but it had only gotten worse while saving Foon and Morvin. Thankfully no one was able to see it due to the darkness of her clothes.

"Try to find a way of transmitting an SOS. Astrid, you're in charge of this." The Doctor handed Astrid the EMP transmitter "Once it's powered up, it'll take out a Host within fifty yards but then it needs sixty seconds to recharge. Got it?" He took his screwdriver from Tyra, passing it to Morvin "Morvin, here. I've pre-set it. Just hold down that button, it'll open doors. Try not to lose it. If you have problems with it, Tyra should be able to help. Now go and open the next door." When Foon went to follow her husband, the Doctor stopped her "Foon, I need you to help Tyra."

"How?" the other woman asked, shooting her a quick look. She had seen the girl flinching whenever someone got too close and the Doctor's sad looks. While she was more than grateful that Tyra had saved them, Foon didn't know what to do. She was a touchy person and would have loved nothing more than to pull the girl into a hug and never let go. She seemed so lost and afraid…

"Just keep an eye on her," the Doctor murmured quietly.

Tyra moved her head a little and glared up at him weakly "Still here. I can hear you."

"I know," he shrugged "But you should know better than to deny help when you need it. Ty, you're barely standing on your own right now." Tyra dropped her chin to her chest "How long have you felt like that?"

"Since the beginning," she admitted quietly.

The Doctor closed his eyes "You should have told me. Hell, you shouldn't have denied it when I asked. You know that this could be dangerous, Ty. You haven't been well before this…" He broke off and shook his head, handing Mr Copper a first aid kit "Mr Copper, you're going to need this. I need you fighting fit. Astrid, where's the power points?"

"Under the Comms," she pointed out, watching as the Doctor quietly talked Tyra, seemingly ignoring her look of discomfort.

The transmitter, once plugged in, lit up with a blue light "See, when it's ready, that blue light comes on there," the Doctor pointed out.

Astrid looked at him carefully "You're talking as if you're not coming with us."

"There's something down on deck thirty-one. I'm going to find out what it is," the Doctor explained.

"What if you meet a Host?" Astrid questioned in worry.

The Doctor sent her a crooked grin "Well, then I'll just have some fun."

Astrid tilted her head "It sounds like you do this kind of thing all the time."

"Not by choice," the Doctor muttered, walking back over to Tyra "All I – All we do is travel. That's what we are. Just travellers." He sent Astrid a small grin "Imagine it. No tax, no bills, no boss. Just the open sky."

Astrid returned the grin "I'm sort of unemployed now. I was thinking the blue box is kind of small for three but I could squeeze in, like a stowaway."

The Doctor licked his lips "It's not always safe."

"You never did say," Astrid murmured, following his eyes to look at Tyra "What happened?"

"Nothing," the Doctor shook his head "Well, nothing you have to worry about. It won't be happening again."

Astrid nodded, unconvinced by the man's words "I've got no one back on Sto. No family," she sighed "Just me. So, what do you think? Can I come with you?"

"Maybe," the Doctor shrugged "We can talk about this later, alright?" A loud bang startled all of them "Mr Frame, you still with us?"

It took a moment but then the Midshipman's voice came through the comms "_It's the engines, sir. Final phase. There's nothing more I can do. We've only got eight minutes left._"

"Don't worry," the Doctor shot back "I'll get there."

"_But the bridge is sealed off,"_ Frame reminded.

The Doctor nodded absentmindedly "Yeah, yeah, working on it. I'll get there, Mr Frame, somehow." He glanced to Astrid "All charged up? Mr Copper, Astrid, look after them. Rickston – er – look after yourself." He turned to Tyra and tilted my head up "I'll see you again, I promise."

"Hm," she hummed, looking up at him pleadingly "Just… Try to stay safe, alright?"

The Doctor leaned down and rested his forehead on Tyra's. He knew that she wouldn't appreciate it if he kissed her right now, no matter how much he wanted it, so he held back "I make no promises. Or maybe I do. I will be back."

"You better be," she breathed, unsure of herself. He was too close to her. Couldn't he see that she was damaged? Or did he just not care? She didn't feel like herself anymore, so how anyone else could, she didn't understand.

"Oh, yes," he smiled a little, running back across the bridge, while Tyra turned with the others, slowly making her way after them.

By now Tyra was hurting more and could barely hold on to the threads of reality that she was clinging too. Everything that happened, all the noise, all the reminders were washing over her but she still didn't allow herself to show any weakness. Not now, not while they were still in danger. She wouldn't forgive herself if she put any of them into danger.

Foon stayed by Tyra's side while still keeping her distance. Morvin and Rickston were leading the group.

Slade opened a door only to find three Host waiting "Do it," he called, ducking to the side when one of them went to hit him.

Astrid activated the EMP, causing the Host to collapse "It worked," she grinned in relief as they continued on.

Just when Tyra felt her vision narrowing, Mr Copper directed Morvin to open a door to the left that supposedly led to Reception. Astrid zapped the Host in the door and turned to face the man holding the Doctor's screwdriver "Morvin, seal the doors, make the room secure. Mr Copper, keep an eye on the Host. Astrid hurried towards the computer, trying to get it to work. When that didn't do anything, she picked up the speaking tube to her left "Bridge this is Reception One."

Frame's voice came on immediately "_Who's there?_"

"Astrid Perth," she replied "I was with the Doctor. Tell me, can you divert power to the teleport system?"

"_No way,_" Frame denied "_I'm using everything I got to keep the engines running._"

Astrid bit her lip "It's just one trip. I need to get to deck thirty-one."

"_And I'm telling you, no,_" the Midshipman shot back firmly.

"Mr Frame," Astrid started, her eyes catching Tyra's gaze "This is for the Doctor. He's gone down there on his own and I – I can't just leave him. He's done everything he can to save us. It's time we did something to help him."

There was silence on the other end before "_Giving you power._"

Astrid let out a breath of relief and grabbed a bracelet "Mr Copper, Tyra, I'm going to find him."

"Good luck," Mr Copper smiled at the waitress, turning back to the Host him and Morvin had been taking apart.

As soon as Astrid was gone, Foon turned to Tyra curiously "So, how long have you known the Doctor?"

Tyra was staring at the spot where Astrid had vanished, blinking the dark spots out of her vision. When Foon reached out to touch her back, Tyra startled, backing away from her immediately "Don't touch me," she spat, glaring at air "Don't… Don't touch me."

"Okay, I'm sorry." Foon looked down at her hand when she felt something sticky on it and gasped at the sight of blood "You're bleeding."

That caught the attention of the others. Mister Copper got up, coming over "Do you need help?"

"Get away from me," Tyra mumbled, backing away even more. Too many people, too much noise. So much noise. She just wanted him out of her head. Why couldn't he just leave her alone? He wasn't even here anymore…

* * *

As soon as the Titanic had stabilised, the Doctor had the Host take him and the Midshipman back down to the level the Reception was on "Morvin, I need my sonic," he snapped as soon as the others were within view "Mister Copper, the teleports, have they got emergency settings?"

Mister Copper looked at him in confusion before shaking his head "I don't know… They should have?"

"She fell," the Doctor murmured "Mister Copper, she fell. What's the emergency code?"

"Er, let me see."

Frame frowned "What the hell are you doing?"

"We can bring her back," the Doctor pointed out, working on the teleport unit.

Mister Copper looked at the others "If a passenger has an accident on shore leave and they're still wearing their teleport bracelet, their molecules are automatically suspended and held in stasis, so if we can just trigger the shift…"

"There," the Doctor exclaimed as an image of Astrid appeared.

"_I'm falling,_" she breathed, looking at the ceiling.

"Feeding back the molecule grid," the Doctor muttered "Boost it with the restoration matrix. No, no, no, no, no. Need more phase containment."

"Doctor," Mister Copper started, putting his hand on the man's arm. He looked over at Foon who was crouching next to Tyra "Doctor, she's gone."

The Doctor shook his head "I just need to override the safety. I can do this. I can do it."

"Doctor, let her go," Mister Copper sighed "She's gone but your friend is still there and she needs your help. There's not enough left of Astrid. The system was too badly damaged. She's just atoms, Doctor. An echo with the ghost of consciousness. She's stardust."

The Doctor stopped "Astrid Peth, citizen of Sto." He looked at the image "The woman who looked at the stars and dreamt of travelling. Now, you can travel forever." He pointed his sonic at a window which opened. Astrid turned into stardust, floating out of the window "You're not falling, Astrid, you're flying."

"Doctor, she's hurt," Foon called out, drawing his attention away from the window. The woman hadn't wanted to interrupt him but she was worried for the unresponsive girl "She wouldn't let us close enough to get the bleeding to stop."

"Oh, Ty," he mumbled, rushing over to them "I told you to tell me… Why do you have to be so stubborn?" He brushed her hair out of her face gently, hushing her when she started to mutter under her breath again "You're safe. You're fine. He's gone. You're safe."

The survivors looked at the two of them, giving them some space.

* * *

Frame cleared his throat as soon as he came back from checking on the bridge "The engines have stabilised. We're holding steady till we get help and I've sent the SOS. A rescue ship should be here within twenty minutes. And they're digging out the records on Max Capricorn. It should be quite a story."

"They'll want to talk to all of us, I suppose," Mister Copper spoke up hesitatingly.

Frame looked at him in confusion "I'd have thought so, yeah."

Mister Copper sighed "I think one or two inconvenient truths might come to light. Still, it's my own fault and ten years in jail is better than dying."

Slade walked up to the Doctor "Doctor, I never said thank you. The funny thing is, I said Max Capricorn was falling apart. Just before the crash, I sold all my shared, transferred them to his rivals. It's made me rich. What do you think of that?" His vone started ringing "Salvain. Those shared. I want them triple-bonded and locked."

Morvin stared after the man in disgust "Of all the people to survive…"

Mister Copper nodded in agreement "He's not the one any of us would have chosen… But if you could choose, Doctor, if you decide who lives and who dies, that would make you a monster."

"Yeah," the Doctor breathed, running his hand through Tyra's hair. He had knocked her out earlier, making sure she couldn't do more damage to herself until he got her to the Tardis "Mister Copper, could you get us five teleport bracelets, please?"

"What for?"

The Doctor looked at him and then to Foon and Morvin. He had heard the couple talking about their money problems and wanted to give them a new life. With the things they knew about technology, they would be able to get good jobs on Earth "I think the three of you deserve them, don't you?"

* * *

The group of five teleported away, leaving only Slade and the Midshipman behind on the wreck that was the Titanic.

"So, Great Britain is part of Europey," Mister Copper said as they trudged over the snow-covered grass to where the Tardis was waiting "And just across the British Channel, you've got Great France and Great Germany."

The Doctor adjusted Tyra in his arms and shook his head "No, no, it's just… it's just France and Germany. Only Britain is Great."

Foon and Morvin were listening attentively, not really knowing much about the Earth as Mister Copper continued "Oh, and they're all at war with the continent of Ham Erica."

"No… Well, not yet," the Doctor started before he huffed "We, could argue that one." He stopped in front of the Tardis with a fond smile "There she is. Survive anything."

"You know, between us, I don't even think this snow is real. I think it's the ballast from the Titanic's salvage entering the atmosphere," Mister Copper said.

The Doctor hummed and looked down at Tyra's more or less relaxed face "Yeah. One of these days it might snow for real, am I right, Ty?"

Foon looked at the Doctor "So… You'll be off, then?"

"The open sky," the Doctor nodded.

"And… What about us? What are we supposed to do?" Morvin asked, grabbing Foon's hand.

The Doctor gestured to the door with his head "Could you open the door for me? I need to put Tyra down and grab something. Key is around her neck."

As soon as the door was open, the Doctor walked in, placing Tyra on the jump seat gently. He brushed her hair back one more time before pulling her phone out of her pocket.

"Here you go," he said, handing over a piece of paper with a phone number on it "This is the number of a friend of mine. If you tell him that the Doctor told you to call… He will help you with getting new identities and jobs here." The Doctor looked at Mister Copper "You still have that credit card, no? Give it to me."

Mister Copper handed it over "It's just petty cash. Spending money. It's all done by computer. I didn't really know the currency, so I thought a million might cover it."

"A million?" the Doctor gaped "Pounds?"

Mister Copper nodded in confusion "That enough for trinkets?"

The Doctor shook himself out of his shock "Mister Copper, a million pounds is worth fifty million credits."

Foon's eyes widened "How much?"

"Fifty million and fifty-six."

"We've got money?" Mister Copper asked, his eyes wider than the Doctor thought possible.

"Yes, you have," the Doctor nodded "But no interfering. I don't want any trouble. Give that number a call and have a nice life."

Mister Copper looked at Morvin and Foon "We can have a house… A proper house with a garden and a door and… Oh."

"Yeah," Foon breathed, smiling at the older man "We can."

Morvin grabbed her hand tightly before inclining his head "Thank you, Doctor. If it weren't for you and your friend, we would have been dead."

"Do something with your lives," the Doctor told them "That's all we ask, alright? With your knowledge of technology, you should be able to find something to do."

Foon stopped him before he could go back into the Tardis "Will we see you again?"

The Doctor shook his head "I don't know. Maybe. If I'm lucky."

"But Doctor," Mister Copper called "I won't forget her."

The Doctor smiled tiredly "Merry Christmas, Mister Copper, Foon, Morvin."

**With this chapter, I'll be taking down the Discontinued version of this Fic. If you still want it, you're welcome to join my Discord. The link is on my profile. I have most of my abandoned/completed stories as a PDF on there along with those of my friend (Maethoriel Artemis).**

**If you don't know her yet, you should check her out. Her stories are awesome.**

**Nick**


	31. Calming Down on Barcelona

"Are you ready?" the Doctor asked, a huge grin on his face. After the disaster that had been the Titanic, he had been hesitant to go anywhere before Tyra was ready but the Tardis took things out of his hands once again. She loved messing with him recently and he had no idea what he did to annoy her so much.

Tyra wrapped her arms around herself, almost drowning in the sweatshirt she was wearing. She was still mad at the Doctor for knocking her out without warning her about it. The whole thing had given her more nightmares than she ever wanted "Where are we?"

"Oh," the Doctor shrugged, his eyes lighting up "Just the place you have wanted to go to forever. We're on Barcelona."

"Really?" Tyra asked, tilting her head, a grimace stealing its way onto her face "We only had to go through hell before you finally take me there."

The Doctor's grin fell as he sighed "Tyra, it isn't like that."

"I know," she shrugged, rubbing at her eyes "It's fine, Doctor. Are we going to see the dogs with no noses?"

"Oh, this isn't even everything," the Doctor told her "I have a bit of a surprise for you."

Tyra looked at him uncomfortably. She wasn't sure what to expect and it wasn't something she wanted to get into. Knowing the Doctor, this trip was going to turn into a mess and there was no way she was up for anything more than sitting around at the moment. Their trip to the Titanic had left more pains than she had before – if that was even possible "Actually, I'm tired, Doctor… I just want to go to sleep some more."

"I'll let you rest after this, alright?" the Doctor asked, hoping that she would at least agree to go with him. He wanted to give her a little bit of peace and quiet "But I really think that you're going to enjoy it."

"At least tell me where we're going," Tyra mumbled, tightening her arms around her stomach. She looked up at the Doctor, with apprehension in her eyes.

The Doctor knelt down in front of her, reaching out to place his palms on her knees "I promise you that you'll not regret it. Trust me?"

Tyra chewed on her lip, looking into the Doctor's pleading eyes before looking away uncomfortably. She relaxed when the Tardis' hum droned out the hateful voice that was starting to overwhelm her "Okay," she whispered, barely audible "Okay, let's go."

The Doctor grinned at her and leaned forward slowly, making his intentions clear before pressing a quick kiss to Tyra's lips. She pulled away almost as quickly as their lips touched but it was good enough for the Doctor "I love you, Ty."

* * *

Tyra looked at the room, trying to keep her expression blank. There were puppies of all colour and races scrambling all over. Puppies with no noses, puppies with wings, puppies with horns, puppies and more puppies, all playing happily with each other. She stuffed her arms back into her sweatshirt keeping her eyes on the puppies.

"Go on," the Doctor nudged her as one of the employees opened the door. He had spoken to them while Tyra had been enthralled by the puppies.

The employees knew how helpful a couple of hours with dogs or animals could be to someone who wasn't well. The fact that they could see how bad the girl was, told them everything they needed to know to let her have some time with their puppies.

Tyra looked up at the Doctor and shook her head, taking a step back. She opened and closed her mouth a couple of times, trying to force out the words before giving up, dropping her head.

The Doctor let out a small sigh and lead her over to the door. He tugged at her until she was kneeling on the floor next to him, the puppies already coming up to them, sniffing curiously.

A pure white puppy with wings that were almost bigger than him, scrambled onto Tyra's lap, bumping his nose into hers once he reached her face '_Sad?_' a childish voice breathed in her mind. Tyra startled before letting a small smile cross her face as she steadied the puppy, running her hands through his soft fur. The fact that the voice was nothing like the malicious one echoing through her head, made her relax some more, letting the pup curl up on her lap '_No like you sad._'

Tyra rubbed the dog's ear, making him sigh contently in her mind. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the Doctor leaving the room. She kept her attention on the puppy "How can you talk?" she breathed, running her fingers along the delicate wings.

'_Mamma sad,_' the puppy yelped, licking at her fingers '_Play?_'

"Why did you call me that?" Tyra asked, a smile crossing her face when another puppy started lugging a huge rope over to them.

* * *

The Doctor sighed, running a hand through his hair tiredly. He didn't mind that Tyra was acting the way she was. She had every right to be as traumatised as she was but it didn't change the fact that he wished she was still the person she had been before all this. The only person to blame for this was Mikael – the Master as well but mainly Mikael since the man had taken way too much pleasure in breaking his own daughter.

"Are you alright, sir?" one of the employees asked, eyes still trained on the room where the girl was carefully playing tug of war with a couple of the dogs. The white puppy from before was on her side with a couple of others trying to tug the rope out of their hands/mouths.

The Doctor hummed "Yes, yes," he nodded before looking through the window "I haven't seen her smile like that in weeks… Oh, how I wish we didn't have to leave again soon…"

"You're always welcome to come back," the man shrugged.

"I might see if we can work this out," the Doctor nodded, seeing the puppies all piling on top of Tyra. The white one that had come up to them almost immediately seemed to be almost pouting when he couldn't find an unoccupied spot "That white one with the wings… There is something about that one."

The worker looked over and nodded "He is one of our gifted ones. Not only is he one of the three puppies who had developed wings but he is telepathic as well."

"Telepathic," the Doctor blinked "I thought those were only rumours."

"They're rare," the worker shook his head "About one or two per generations. There was one year we had six but that was an exception." He paused and looked through the window again "These dogs choose their owners… Seems as if this one has found his."

The Doctor's head snapped around "You mean…?"

"See the way he is protecting her? Being attentive of what the other dogs are doing?" the worker pointed out, nodding to the scene. Tyra was still lying on her back, scratching the puppies' bellies "Normally, we don't allow any of the dogs out of the nursery unless they are older but separating a bonded pair is worse…"

"Bonded…" the Doctor mumbled. He had only heard rumours, so he wasn't sure what that bond actually was. A part of him was scared for Tyra since she had Mikael in her head for so long. A bond like that could possibly do a lot of damage but it could also help her heal. It all depended on her and the dog. If Tyra blocked the bond, it could possibly hurt them both and he wouldn't allow that. The only problem was that the bond was already developing and there was nothing that could break him without making Tyra worse. The only thing he could do was to take the dog along… Whether it was a good idea or not "So how do we go about this?"

The worker tilted his head "Well, I suggest talking to her first. Then you can decide on what to do… Do you need an info pack? We have information on all our dogs, their likes and dislikes and what you'd need to know about the puppy's development. At the moment, he is still really young but with the bond, he is going to mature quicker mentally. His body is going to stay the size it is now."

"So, he isn't getting bigger?" the Doctor questioned "What about the wings?"

"The wings might grow a little more and will be getting stronger but they won't be fully developed for another year or so."

The Doctor nodded again and made his way to the door. Well, he'd better tell Tyra about this now. See what she thought about all of this.

* * *

A couple of hours later, the Doctor was leaning against the railing of the pavilion, watching the puppy chase after a ball that Tyra was throwing for him. The white ball of fluff was running as fast as he could, occasionally falling down face-first when his wings unfolded, stopping his run abruptly.

He still wasn't sure what to do about the dog. They wouldn't be able to take him with them out of the Tardis because of the wings but even after a couple of hours, the Doctor couldn't deny that Tyra was smiling a little more than she had just this morning.

The Doctor made his way over to her, kneeling down next to her while she was petting the soft white fur "Have you decided on a name yet?" he asked, reaching out to run his hand over the pup's head.

"Loki," Tyra whispered "His name is Loki."

"The God of Mischief," the Doctor noted, eyeing the puppy nervously "Any reason for the name?"

Tyra sent him a weak smirk "You'll have to wait and see," she pointed out before a yawn forced itself out of her mouth.

The Doctor ruffled her hair gently and held out his hand "Come on. Up you get," he told her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders with Loki running around them.

**About Loki. So yeah, he is telepathic. His voice is… Think of Tom Holland. If Loki were real, he would be voiced by him. Maybe not at the beginning but once he matures a bit with the speaking part. But yeah… **

**Nick**


	32. Partners in Crime

The Doctor was walking along the road to a building that had been nagging at him for quite a while already. Tyra had stayed behind in the Tardis, opting out of his little investigation which he was rather happy about. She was still not anywhere near alright but at least things seemed to go a little better now that Loki was with them. No matter how much trouble that puppy was – and he definitely was mischievous enough to warrant the name Tyra gave him – he helped Tyra whenever she blanked. He was the only one that could go anywhere near her when she was locked inside her head. Whenever the Doctor tried to touch her in that moments, she would flinch away, maybe even panic more. It had been hard for the both of them but the Doctor loved her. He would do everything for Tyra, even if that meant that she wasn't ready to be touched for the next hundred years.

"John Smith." He flashed his psychic paper at the guard he passed when he sonicked his way through the back entrance "Health and Safety."

* * *

Tyra was absentmindedly running her fingers along Loki's wings as she had always done when she was lost in thoughts. The Doctor had left some time earlier in the morning and she was bored. The Tardis was well and good – more than that actually but she had been copped up for weeks already and she really wanted to go out. To just walk through the streets of the Earth she hadn't seen in over a year now. Not in person at least. A part of her had missed ending up on Earth every couple of days… She had missed a lot over the Year That Never Was but back then she had dismissed those wants and needs as childish notions. Having Mikael around constantly had been a nightmare come real. Everything that he was when they were Human had been amplified in his hatred.

'_Mum, alright?_' Loki asked, tilting his head.

"I'm fine, Loki," Tyra whispered, scratching the puppy behind the ears "I'm just bored."

Loki jumped up, his tail twitching '_Walk? Me want walk._'

Tyra smiled slightly and lifted herself from the grass with some effort "Let's go, then. Can you find your collar?" The Doctor had made Loki a collar that doubled as a perception filter. It would hide his wings from everyone who didn't know of them. She didn't have it on him a lot since they were in the Tardis most of the time but on Earth, it would definitely be better for both of them if his wings were hidden.

Loki was already out of the room before she had finished her sentence. Tyra shook her head at him and walked out of the garden, the Tardis shifting the hallways to make her path to the console room a lot shorter than it would normally be. She had been doing that a lot, the Tardis. Shifting corridors and room around to get them as close to her as possible.

* * *

"Adipose Industries, the twenty-first century way to lose weight," Miss Foster, the CEO of Adipose was explaining "No exercise, no diet, no pain. Just lifelong freedom from fat. The Holy Grail of the modern age. And here it is." She held up a capsule "You just take one capsule. One capsule, once a day for three weeks and the far, as they say…"

The film took over "_The fat just walks away._"

A woman from the audience spoke up, her tone full of doubt "Excuse me, Miss Foster. If I could? I'm Penny Carter, science correspondent for The Observer. There are a thousand diet pills on the market, a thousand con men stealing people's money. How do we know the fat isn't going straight to your bank account?"

Foster smiled thinly "Oh, Penny, if cynicism burnt up calories, we'd all be as thin as rakes. But if you want the science, I can oblige." With that, she stepped back, letting the film once again take over.

"_Adipose Industries. The Adipose capsule is composed of a synthesised mobilising lipase, bound to a large protein molecule. The mobilising lipase breaks up the triglycerides stored in the adipose cells, which then enter…_"

The Doctor looked up from where he was watching through a window in the projector room "Health and Safety," he introduced himself to the man who was manning the tape "Film department."

In the lecture hall, Foster continued "One hundred percent legal, one hundred percent effective."

"But, can I just ask, how many people have taken the pills to date?" Penny cut in again.

"We're already got one million customers within the Greater London area alone but from next week, we start rolling out nationwide. The future starts here. And Britain will be thin," Foster explained with a smug look on her face as she watched the journalists scribbling on whatever piece of paper they had brought along.

The Doctor shot her another look before he walked out of the room and wandered around until he found the call centre were a couple dozen people were sitting, calling people "Good morning. I represent Adipose Industries…"

He walked over to one of the cubicles, waving his hand to get her attention. She looked up, doing a double-take. A seductive smile stole its way across her face as she continued to talk with the person on the other end of the line "We deliver within three working days."

"John Smith," the Doctor told her in a low voice "Health and Safety. Don't mind me."

"It's made of eighteen-carat gold," the woman explained as the Doctor fished out a pendant with a gold-plated Adipose pill "And it's yours for free. No, we don't give away pens, sorry. No, I can't make an exception, no."

"I'm going to need a list of your customers," the Doctor said once she hung up the phone.

The woman smiled and immediately did as he asked "Sure."

"That's the printer there?" the Doctor asked, popping his head over the partition.

"By the plant, yeah," the woman agreed.

"Brilliant," he grinned "Has it got paper?"

The woman nodded "Yeah, Jimbo keeps it stocked."

Just then Miss Foster walked in with two guards flanking her "Excuse me, everyone, if I could have your attention." All the workers stood as the Doctor ducked down further "On average, you're each selling forty Adipose packs per day. It's not enough. I want one hundred sales per person per day. And if not, you'll be replaced. Because if anyone's good in trimming the fat, it's me. Now… Back to it."

As soon as she was gone, the Doctor turned back to the woman "Anyway, if you could print that off. Thanks." He went to get up but was pushed back into the chair by the woman who pressed a piece of paper into his hands "Oh," he blinked "What's that?"

"My telephone number."

The Doctor gaped at her in surprise "What for?"

"Health and Safety," she shrugged with a smirk "You be health, I'll be safety."

"Ah," the Doctor grimaced "Ah… Sorry, I'm taken."

The woman shrugged "They don't have to know."

"Happily taken," the Doctor corrected himself, trying not to think about what Tyra would have done if she had been here… Well, probably not much apart from her self-esteem getting even lower. She rarely spoke up when anything or anyone bothered her. He shook his head and walked to the printer, looking for the copies. When he couldn't find them, he groaned and made his way back to the woman "Me again."

* * *

Hindsight was twenty-twenty, Tyra mused as she staggered into a streetlamp, clutching at it like a lifeline. She had been about as fine as she could have been a moment ago and now she was close to collapsing. Loki whined lowly, nudging Tyra's leg '_Mum, sit._'

"I'm fine," she slurred, trying to look around to find the way back to the Tardis as the world swam around her. She stumbled again and tripped over the leash, falling to her knees harshly "Maybe not…"

"Oh, my God," a male voice breathed as footsteps hurried closer. Tyra flinched when a hand touched her shoulder, causing Loki to growl "Are you alright, miss?"

Tyra blinked sluggishly, burying her hand in Loki's fur.

"Is there anyone I can call for you, Miss?" an older man asked, coming to a stop in front of her.

Tyra grabbed the old man's arm, stopping him from taking out his phone "No. No, I'm fine."

"But you're hurt," the man pointed out before realising that he hasn't introduced himself yet "Oh, I'm Wilf… Wilfred Mott."

"Tyra," Tyra forced out before gesturing to the white ball of fluff practically on her lap now "Loki."

Wilf looked at the girl closely "Are you sure that you don't need me to call anyone? You look like you need help."

"No," Tyra shook her head "I'm… I just need a moment."

"You look like you need more than a moment," he pointed out "Can you walk a little more?"

Tyra looked up at him suspiciously "Why?"

"I was going to go stargazing," he explained, rubbing his neck sheepishly "You might be able to relax a bit better than in the middle of a busy road. It's not far from here."

Tyra hesitated, looking down at Loki '_Mum okay?_'

'_What do I do, Loki?_'

'_He smell nice,_' Loki told her, nudging her stomach gently '_You rest._'

"You don't have to, of course," Wilf added quickly, raising his hand "You don't know me, after all."

Tyra bit her lip. She didn't want to go with him but there was something about the man that seemed familiar. Like he reminded her of someone but also… Not? "I… Okay. I – I can't get up."

"Oh, here." Wilf held out his hand, pulling the slight girl to her feet.

They had been sitting silently for quite a while until Tyra looked down the hill and saw a familiar figure heading toward them from way down "I should go," she whispered, fighting to get to her feet "Thank you for helping me."

"Are you sure you're okay to go back?" Wilf asked, looking up at the girl in concern. He had stopped petting Loki, making the pup while, pressing closer to him. Wilf was a really good petter.

She smiled at him faintly "I'll be fine. My – My boyfriend will be worried if I'm not back soon."

He nodded reluctantly "Alright. Take care of yourself."

"I will." She inclined her head and made her way down the hill with Loki at her heels. She stopped in some shadows not too far down, watching Donna walking up to the man who had helped her.

"Aye, aye," Wilf laughed lightly "Here comes trouble."

Donna grinned at him, saluting playfully "Permission to board ship, sir?"

"Permission granted," Wilf told her, watching Donna closely "Was she nagging you?"

"Big time," Donna snorted "Brought you a thermos."

Wilf's face lit up "Oh, ta."

Donna leaned her head back, looking up at the darkened sky "You seen anything?"

Wilf nodded excitedly "Yeah, I've got Venus, there with an apparent magnitude of minus three point five. At least, that's what it says in my little book." Donna put a tarpaulin on the ground next to him, sitting down "Here, come and see. Come on. Here you go. Right?" Donna looked at the bright evening star "That's the only planet in the Solar System named after a woman."

"Good for her," Donna laughed lightly "How far away is that?"

"Oh, it's about twenty-six million miles," Wilf told her "But we'll get there, one day. In a hundred years time we'll be striding out amongst the stars. Jiggling about with all them aliens. Just you wait." Tyra smiled at his enthusiasm. The man was definitely sweet and she could see where Donna got some of her personality from… The one that isn't shouty.

Donna looked up at her grandfather "You really believe in all that stuff, don't you?"

"It's all over the place these days," Wilf shrugged "If I wait here long enough…"

'_Why we waiting?_' Loki asked Tyra.

"Shush," she murmured "I want to hear that… I'll explain later."

Donna let out a sighed "I don't suppose you've seen a little blue box?"

"Is that slang for something?" Wilf blinked.

"No, I mean it," Donna laughed, looking up at the stars wistfully. Oh, how she wished she had accepted the Doctor's offer to travel with him and Tyra. After seeing what was out there… It was hard to go back to a normal life "If you ever see a little blue box flying up there in the sky, you shout for me, Gramps. Oh, you just shout."

Loki looked up at his mum '_She know you?_'

Tyra nodded "Yeah. We met her before Martha… Before… Before everything went to hell."

'_Go talk?_'

"No," she shook her head "No… Come on, Lo'. Let's go."

* * *

"Where have you been?" the Doctor asked, abandoning the capsule he had been examining on the console to hurry over to Tyra.

She gestured over her shoulder, leaning into him a little "Went for a walk."

"Loki, when did you leave?" the Doctor asked, looking down at the dog.

'_Too long. Light,_' Loki answered, shaking himself once the leash was off.

The Doctor looked at Tyra closely "You're tired," he whispered, wrapping his arms around her more securely "Come on. I think I can leave the scan running until you get some sleep."

"You don't have to," Tyra protested lightly "I can go on my own."

"As if you're actually going to sleep if I let you go on your own," the Doctor grinned lightly, running his hand through her hair.

Tyra let out a small sigh and let the Doctor lead her to the room they had been sharing. Since they returned from the Titanic, they had switched from her room to one that was in a completely different direction. Judging by the looks, it was the Doctor's room. She hadn't actually mentioned it, though. Not like it mattered much which bed she was in. She could barely catch any sleep as it was.

The next morning, they were in the console room by eight "You're staying in today, aren't you?" the Doctor asked, looking at the scans the Tardis had taken of the pendant he had taken from Adipose.

"Hm," Tyra hummed, curling around Loki's warmth with a small shiver.

The Doctor straightened "I mean it, Ty. I don't like you wandering around. Not while you're still likely to…"

"I get it," she huffed in annoyance "I'm staying here with Loki."

"Thank you," the Doctor sighed, pressing a kiss to her forehead. He had noticed her flinching and moving out of his grip less and less while they were in the Tardis. Everything outside of the doors was still up for grabs but at least she was getting better. It was slow progress and while it was frustrating to both of them, with Loki's help they were managing. The Doctor was going to investigate the stuff that couldn't wait on his own, while Tyra just focussed on getting better. At least… That was the plan.

* * *

After a whole day of waiting in a cupboard, the Doctor knew how Tyra felt. Although, at least she had the Tardis to entertain herself. It was still not really nice to be trapped in the same place for hours and hours, no matter how nice. He understood why she wanted to go out but he was quite frankly scared. The trip to Barcelona had gone as well as it could have but it was one of their better once.

He glanced out of the door and hurried to the office and further up to the roof. There was a window cleaner's cradle that he quickly hijacked to get himself down to Miss Foster's office.

"This is ridiculous," Penny shouted as she was dragged into the office.

Miss Foster pointed to the seat across from her desk "Sit there."

Penny fought against the hands holding her "I'm phoning my editor."

"I said sit," Miss Foster gritted out sternly.

The Doctor raised his hand, placing the end of the stethoscope against the window to listen to their conversation through the glass.

"You can't tie me up," Penny protested as she was being secured to the chair with cables "What sort of a country do you think this is?"

Miss Foster smirked "Oh, it's a beautifully fat country. And believe me, I've travelled a long way to find obesity on this scale."

"So, come on then, Miss Foster," Penny challenged "Those pills. What are they?"

"Well, you might just as well have a scoop, since you'll never see it printed," Miss Foster shrugged "This…" She held up a capsule with reverence "Is the spark of life."

Penny blinked in confusion "And what's that supposed to mean?"

"Officially, the capsule attracts all the fat cells and flushes them away," Miss Foster explained and shrugged with a small smile "Well, it certainly attracts them. That part's true. But it binds the fat together and galvanises it to form a body."

"What do you mean, a body?" Penny breathed.

Miss Foster sent her a wry smile "I am surprised you never asked about my name. I chose it well… Foster. As in foster mother. And these are my children." She took a small creature out of a drawer and placed it on her desk.

Penny's eyes were wide as she stared at the small creature "You're kidding me. What the hell is that?" The Doctor and Donna both looked through their respective windows at the desk.

"Adipose. It's called an Adipose," Miss Foster told her "Made out of living fat."

Penny shook her head "But… I don't understand."

"From ordinary Human people."

That was the point in the conversation where Donna and the Doctor caught sight of each other, stopping short 'Donna?' the Doctor mouthed in surprise.

'Doctor? Doctor!'

The Doctor shook his head 'But what? What? What?'

Donna stared at the man she had been looking for since he left 'Oh, my God.'

'But how?' the Doctor continued.

Donna gestured to herself excitedly 'It's me!'

'Yes,' the Doctor nodded with an amused eye roll 'I can see that.'

'Oh, this is brilliant,' Donna gushed.

The Doctor tilted his head 'What the hell are you doing here?'

'I was looking for you.'

'What for?' the Doctor asked.

'I read it on the internet,' Donna gestured 'Weird. Crept along. Heard them talking. Hid. You…' She trailed off when she realised that the conversation inside had stopped completely and everyone was staring at them.

Miss Foster raised an eyebrow "Are we interrupting you?"

'Run!' the Doctor mouthed.

Donna quickly disappeared from the window as the Doctor zapped the office door with his sonic "Get her," Miss Foster snapped before glaring at the window "And him." The Doctor waved, sending the cradle back up to the rood as Donna ran upstairs.

"Hey, what about me?" Penny shouted as they all left her in the room by herself.

The Doctor hurried down the stairs as quickly as he could, jumping down several at a time until he ran into Donna "Oh, my God," she breathed, holding onto his arms "I don't believe it. You've even got the same suit." She looked at him "Don't you ever change?"

"Yeah, thanks," the Doctor snorted "Not right now."

"Doctor," Donna frowned, looking around "Where's Tyra?"

"Not now, Donna. Just…" He leaned over the railing, seeing the guards a few floors below before he straightened up with a grin "Just like old times."

The two of them ran back up to the roof as Donna kept talking "Because I thought, how do you find the Doctor? And then I just thought, look for trouble and he'll turn up." The Doctor sonicked the door "So, I looked everywhere. You name it. UFOs, sightings, crop circles, sea monsters… I looked, I found them all." She hummed and looked at him "Like that stuff about the bees disappearing. I thought I bet he's connected. Because the thing is, Doctor, I believe it all now. You opened my eyes. All those amazing things out there, I believe them all." She stopped and shrugged sheepishly "Well, apart from that replica of the Titanic flying over Buckingham Palace on Christmas Day. I mean, that's got to be a hoax."

The Doctor was working on the cables of the cradle he was in earlier "What do you mean, the bees are disappearing?"

Donna shrugged "I don't know. That's what it says on the internet. Well, on the same site, there was all these conspiracy theories about Adipose Industries and I thought, let's take a look."

The Doctor sonicked the controls "In you get," he gestured.

"What, in that thing?" Donna asked, eyeing the cradle carefully.

"Yes, in that thing," the Doctor rolled his eyes.

Donna tilted her head "But if we go down in that, they'll just call us back up again."

"No, no, no," the Doctor shook his head "Because I've locked the controls with a sonic cage. I'm the only one that can control it. Not unless she's got a sonic device of her own, which is very unlikely."

They got in and the Doctor sent them on their way down the side of the building until the cradle started to drop rapidly "Hold on," the Doctor breathed, making the cradle stop "Hold on. We can get in through the window." He tried to open the window before looking down at his sonic in frustration "Can't get it open…"

"Well, smash it then," Donna shouted, using a spanner to hit at the glass. She looked up to see Miss Foster burning through the cable and gasped "She's cutting the cable."

As soon as those words left her mouth, the cable snapped, causing Donna to top out while the Doctor barely managed to hold on "Donna!" he shouted.

Donna was dangling from the end of the cable "Doctor!"

"Hold on," he called down.

She shot him a glare "I am! Doctor!" The Doctor looked up toward the roof, seeing Miss Foster working on the other cable. He carefully aimed at her sonic and blasted it out of her hand, barely catching it as it fell "I'm going to fall!" She watched as the Doctor climbed up to a window, sliding it open "This is all your fault. I should've stayed at home."

"I won't be a minute," he promised, silently thanking the universe that Tyra wasn't here. This could have potentially ended very badly for her and he didn't really want to set her back again. He ran downstairs to the office and hurried over to the window.

Penny stared at him "Is anyone going to tell me what's going on?"

"What are you, a journalist?" the Doctor asked, opening the window.

"Yes," Penny nodded."

The Doctor shot her a look "Well, make it up." He leaned out to grab Donna's legs "I've got you. I've got you. Stop kicking." He carefully pulled her inside, grimacing when she hit his arm.

"I was right," Donna breathed, steadying herself "It's always like this with you, isn't it?"

The Doctor grinned "Oh, yes. And off we go."

"Oi!" Penny shouted after them.

"Sorry," the Doctor mumbled, poking his head back into the room. He zapped her free and narrowed his eyes on her "Now do yourself a favour and get out." He grabbed Donna's hand and they ran back through the building until they ran into Miss Foster and her guards on the floor where the call centres were.

"Well, then," Miss Foster smiled "At last."

Donna waved "Hello."

The Doctor grinned a little "Nice to meet you, I'm the Doctor."

"And I'm Donna," Donna added.

"Partners in Crime," Miss Foster noted "And evidently off-worlders, judging by your sonic technology."

"Oh, yes, I've still got your sonic pen," the Doctor remarked, pulling it out of his pocket "Nice. I like it. Sleep… It's kind of sleek."

Donna nodded "Oh, it's definitely sleek."

The Doctor looked at the woman across from him "Yeah, and if you were to sign your real name… That would be?"

"Matron Cofelia of the Five Straighten Classabindi Nursery Fleet. Intergalactic Class," she said.

The Doctor's eyebrows shot up "A wet nurse using Humans as surrogates."

Matron Cofelia straightened up "I've been employed by the Adiposian First Family to foster a new generation after their breeding planet was lost."

"What do you mean lost?" the Doctor blurted out "How do you lose a planet?"

"Oh, politics are none of my concern," the woman waved off "I'm just here to take care of the children on behalf of their parents."

Donna blinked a couple of times "What, like an outer space super nanny?"

Cofelia shrugged "Yes, if you like."

"So… So those little things," Donna started, gesturing with her hands "They're – They're made out of fat, yeah, but that woman, Stacy Campbell, there was nothing left of her."

"Oh, in a crisis the Adipose can convert bone and hair and internal organs," Cofelia explained "Makes them a little bit sick, poor things."

Donna clenched her fists "What about poor Stacy?"

"Seeding a level five planet is against galactic law," the Doctor pointed out calmly.

Cofelia raised her eyebrows in amusement "Are you threatening me?"

The Doctor shook his head "I'm trying to help you, Matron. This is your one chance because if you don't call this off, then I'll have to stop you."

"I hardly think you can stop bullets," Cofelia dismissed as the guard took aim.

"No, hold on," the Doctor shot back, holding out his hands "Hold on, hold on, hold on… Where is Tyra when you need her…. One more thing before… You know? Dying." He slipped his hands into his pockets "Do you know what happens if you hold two identical sonic devices against each other?"

"No," Cofelia said.

The Doctor shrugged with a grin "Nor me. Let's find out."

The noise from the sonics caused a loud noise that shattered all the glass nearby, making them all clutch at their ears. Donna pushed the Doctor's arm "Come on." They hurried back to where the Doctor had been hiding the whole day, throwing out the ladder and mops he had ignored earlier "Well, that's one solution," Donna remarked "Hide in a cupboard. I like it."

"I've been hacking into this thing all day," the Doctor said, sliding the back wall aside to reveal a big green machine "Because the matron's got a computer core running through the centre of the building. Triple deadlocked. But now I've got this." He held up her sonic pen "I can get into it." The Doctor let out a sigh "She's wired up the whole building. We need a bit of privacy." He twisted two wires together, causing a forcefield to stop the guards "Just enough to stop them. Why has she wired up the tower block? What's it all for?"

Donna watched the Doctor from the side "You look older and tired. What happened to you and why isn't Tyra here?"

"Thanks," the Doctor shot back, ignoring her question about Tyra. He knew that she wouldn't give up but he really didn't think that Tyra would appreciate him talking about her to anyone they know. At least not the people who don't know what happened.

"Doctor, what about Tyra?" Donna asked again. She was slightly afraid to ask because the girl wasn't here "Where is she? Did she leave?"

The Doctor stopped what he was doing for a moment before shaking his head "No, no. Tyra is in the Tardis. She… It's complicated."

Donna nodded, reluctantly dropping the subject. She could see that this was all she was going to get from him on that matter at the moment "Are you two still on your own then?"

"Yup," he shrugged "Well, no. I – We had this friend. Martha, she was called. Martha Jones. She was brilliant and I destroyed her life. But she's fine, she's good. She's gone."

"What about Rose?"

The Doctor grimaced a little at the thought of the blonde. Ever since he overheard Tyra and Martha, the two of them had talked about Rose's behaviour more and he finally saw the bigger picture "Still lost." He glanced over his shoulder "I thought you were going to travel the world?"

Donna snorted "Easier said than done. It's like I had that one day with you and I was going to change. I was going to do so much. Then I woke up the next morning, same old life." She sighed, running a hand through her hair "It's like you were never there and I tried. I did try. I went to Egypt. I was going to go barefoot and everything and then it's all bus trips and guidebooks and don't drink the water and two weeks later you're back home. It's nothing like being with you. I must have been mad turning down that offer."

The Doctor blinked slowly "What offer?"

"To come with you."

"Come with me?"

Donna's face lit up "Oh yes, please."

The Doctor blinked rapidly "Right…"

"_Inducer activated,_" the computer announced.

Donna leaned closer "What's it doing now?"

"She's started the programme."

"_Inducer transmitting._"

The Doctor started working faster, trying to stop the programme from continuing "So far they're just losing weight but the Matron's gone up to emergency pathogenesis."

"And that's when they convert," Donna whispered.

"Skeletons, organs, everything," the Doctor mumbled "A million people are going to die. Got to cancel the signal." He dismantled the pendant he had stuffed back into his pocket "This contains a primary signal. If I can switch it off, the fat goes back to being just fat." He added the pendant to the inducer.

"_Inducer increasing._"

The Doctor hissed "No, no, no, no. She's doubled it. I need…" He ran his hand through his hair, tugging at it "Haven't got time. It's too far. I can't override it. They're all gonna die."

Donna looked at him "Is there anything I can do?"

"Sorry, Donna, this is way beyond you. Got to double the base pulse, I can't."

"Doctor," Donna said, looking at him "What do you need?"

"I need a second capsule to boost the override," the Doctor said "But I've only got the one. I can't save them…" He trailed off when Donna held up her pendant and a grin stole its way across his face.

Donna startled when a loud noise echoed through the building "What the hell was that?"

"That would be the nursery," the Doctor commented with a grimace.

Donna nodded slowly "When you say nursery you don't mean a crèche in Notting Hill."

"Nursery ship," the Doctor corrected himself.

"_Incoming signal,_" the computer announced, turning on to transmit a message in another language.

"Hadn't we better go and stop them?" Donna asked worriedly.

The Doctor held up his hand "Hang on, instructions from the Adiposian First Family." The longer the message went on, the wider the Doctor's eyes got "She's wired up the tower block to convert it into a levitation post. Oooh. Oh, We're not the only ones in trouble now. She is!" He turned, grabbing Donna's hand, running straight back towards the stairs and up to the roof.

"What are you gonna do, then?" Donna asked, staring at the levitating blobs "Blow them up?"

The Doctor shot her a look "They're just children. They can't help where they come from."

Donna raised an eyebrow "Oh, that makes a change from last time. That Martha must have done you good." She paused for a moment "That, and I imagine Tyra finally managed to get into your thick head."

"They did," the Doctor nodded "Yeah…"

Donna waved at one of the Adipose before turning to look at her hand incredulously "I'm waving at fat."

The Doctor coughed "Actually, as a diet plan, it sort of works." Then he lurched forward "There she is." Cofelia was floating upwards, too, just below the little Adipose "Matron Cofelia, listen to me."

"Oh, I don't think so, Doctor," she shook her head "And if I never see you again, it'll be too soon."

He groaned "Oh, why does no one ever listen. I'm trying to help. Just get across to the roof." He held out his hand "Can you shift the levitation beam?"

Cofelia sneered "What, do that you can arrest me?"

"Just listen," the Doctor huffed "I saw the Adiposian instructions. They know it's a crime, breeding on Earth. So what's the one thing they want to get rid of? Their accomplice."

"I'm far more than that," Cofelia waved off "I'm nanny to all these children."

The Doctor nodded "Exactly," he exclaimed "Mum and Dad have got the kids now. They don't need the nanny anymore." Just as the words left his lips, the levitation beam switched off. Matron Cofelia did a double-take before she fell with a scream. Donna gasped, hiding her face in the Doctor's chest as the spaceship flew away.

* * *

Their way back to the Tardis was relatively quiet. Donna had tried asking the Doctor about Tyra but had given up when he avoided every single one of her questions. It was starting to worry her a little because the way he was avoiding the subject, she was sure something bad had happened. Bad enough for Tyra – the girl who had shrugged a fatal stab wound off like it was nothing – to not go with the Doctor on his adventures.

"That's my car," Donna exclaimed in surprise "That is like… destiny and I've been ready for this." She threw open the boot, revealing suitcases over suitcases "I packed ages ago, just in case. Because I thought, hot weather, cold weather, no weather. He goes anywhere and I've got to be prepared." She unloaded the boot into the Doctor's arms, placing a hatbox on top.

The Doctor blinked dumbly "You've got a – a hatbox."

Donna grinned exuberantly "Planet of the Hats, I'm ready. I don't need injections, do I? You know, like when you go to Cambodia. Is there any of that? Because my friend Veena went to Bahrain and she…" Her smiled dropped "You're not saying much…"

"No," the Doctor shook his head, sending her a small smile "It's just… It's a funny old life in the Tardis."

"You don't want me," Donna murmured, her shoulders dropping.

The Doctor set down the suitcases "I'm not saying that. I just – I just need to talk to Tyra before I decide anything. I'm not sure if she'll want… With what happened… Just – Just give me a few minutes, okay?"

"Can I come and see her?" Donna asked.

"I'll bring her out if she wants to come," the Doctor told her before slipping through the doors, leaving them open behind him. He paused by the console briefly before making his way through the corridors, trusting the Tardis to lead him to where Tyra was. It didn't take him long to find her. She was curled up in the Chinese gardens with Loki on her stomach, staring at the sky. The Doctor walked closer, making sure to make as much noise as possible without going overboard. Loki perked up, looking over at him for a moment before he settled back down on Tyra's chest "Ty."

Tyra blinked, turning her head to look up at him "Is it done?"

"Yeah," he nodded "Everything taken care off."

"Does that mean we're leaving?" she asked, sitting up. Loki yelped when he slid down to her lap but calmed down immediately when Tyra started rubbing between his ears.

"You're spoiling him," the Doctor shook his head fondly, reaching out to scratch Loki before he remembered why he went looking for her in the first place "Right… There was something I wanted to ask you."

Tyra tilted her head "What?"

"I met Donna," he told her "Would you… Would you mind if she comes along?"

"I…"

The Doctor sensed her hesitation and quickly added "You don't have to say yes. I told her that I'd check with you first."

Tyra shook her head "No… No. It's fine. I don't mind Donna coming."

"She's outside," the Doctor explained "Come on."

"Now?" Tyra asked, rubbing at her arms uncomfortably. She could feel the anxiety creeping up on her, running her fingers over Loki's wings the way she always did when she needed to calm herself down.

The Doctor held out his arms, drawing her into an embrace "I'm not forcing you to go out and see her if you don't want to but you can't run from her. Not if she is going to travel with us."

Tyra sighed and leaned her head against his shoulder for a moment before she steeled herself "Kay. Come on."

They reached the console room relatively quickly, the Tardis once again shifting the gardens closer to the doors. It made the Doctor mutter under his breath about his spaceship favouring Tyra over him. He shook his head and headed outside while Tyra sat down on the jump seat with Loki.

"Donna?" the Doctor frowned, looking around outside.

Donna walked up from the direction of the street "Sorry. I was taking care of the car keys. What did she say?"

The Doctor looked at her for a moment before he broke into a smile "Come on."

"I can come?"

"Yeah," the Doctor nodded "Course you can. We'd love that."

Donna grinned, throwing her arms around him "Oh, that's just… Thank you." With that, she pushed past him into the Tardis, leaving him outside with the bags "Tyra," she whispered, looking at the girl on the jump seat.

Tyra smiled weakly "Hey, Donna."

"What…" Donna took a hesitant step closer, seeing the fresh-looking wound on the side of Tyra's face "What happened? The Doctor mentioned something but… He didn't say."

Tyra shrugged "It's nothing, Donna."

"That's not nothing," Donna pointed out, resting her hands on her hips.

"Please," Tyra mumbled, her hand tightening in Loki's fur "Just… Stop. Please."

Donna froze before she forced herself to relax "Ty, I'm sorry. I didn't mean…"

"It's fine," she whispered, getting up "Tell the Doctor that I went to bed."

"Yeah," Donna nodded, watching her leave.

The Doctor walked into the Tardis a moment later, lugging Donna's bags with him. He stopped in the doorway "Where's Ty?"

"She said she was going to bed," Donna mumbled "Doctor, I think I messed up."

"No," the Doctor shook his head with a sigh "Ty… It's not your fault, Donna. You didn't know. If anything, it's mine for not telling you."


	33. The Sun Also Rises

"So, where are we going? The past? The future? An alien planet?" Donna asked, watching the Doctor dashing around the console.

Tyra bit her lip nervously "Actually… Nik just called, Doctor."

The Doctor stopped and looked over "It's time, isn't it?" When Tyra just nodded quietly, he walked over, running his hand through her hair "Do you want to go?"

"I – I told him that I would be there when he breaks the curse," Tyra mumbled.

"Ah," the Doctor grinned and gestured to the Tardis "But we don't have to go now if you don't feel well enough. Isn't that the good thing about having a time machine?"

Donna looked between the two curiously "What are you talking about?" She might have had a bit of a problem when it came to reconnecting with Tyra but they were starting to get along better again. Donna just had to learn not to push the other girl too much.

Tyra shrugged "It's complicated."

"One of her brothers had a curse placed on him," the Doctor explained "He's been trying to break it for over a thousand years already."

"And now it's time," Donna nodded even if she wanted to continue asking questions… What kind of curse? Why would anyone want to place a curse on Tyra's brother? These and many more questions were swirling around in her head, wanting out but Donna pushed back her curiosity, clapping her hands "So, what are we waiting for?"

"You're not coming," Tyra mumbled "Either of you. If I'm going, I'll go alone."

The Doctor stared at Tyra for a moment "Ty…"

"No," she shook her head "If I know Nik, he's made enemies. It'll be hard enough to stay undetected by myself but with the two of you?"

"Oi," the Doctor huffed.

Tyra shot him a look before lowering her head quickly "You have to admit that you're not good with sitting still."

"Hey, I'm not mad," the Doctor told her with a grin before turning serious again "At least take Loki with you and use the perception filter in your necklace… Please."

"Fine," she mumbled as she wrapped her hand around the necklace and looked over at Loki who had stood up from the jump seat he had been lounging on "If you get eaten, it's your fault."

Donna blinked "Eaten?"

"Werewolves," Tyra shrugged.

"Okay, hold on," Donna spoke up, a perplexed look on her face "What? You say werewolves like it's normal."

Tyra and the Doctor exchanged a look "You do remember that Tyra is a vampire, right?" the Doctor asked "And I'm an alien."

"But werewolves?"

"But Humans," the Doctor snorted in the same tone of voice.

Donna raised her hands "Okay… Okay. What else is out there?"

"Trust me, you don't want to know," the Doctor shook his head "Although, stay around and you might see more about Earth than you thought was possible."

Tyra reached over to where she had stashed a jacket to pull over her sweatshirt. It was a bit cold outside and she had been getting cold rather quickly recently "I'll be back in a bit."

"Be careful," the Doctor sighed, pulling her close once again "Please…"

"Nothing is going to happen," she told him before whistling lowly "Come on, Loki."

* * *

It was a couple of hours before the moon was up when Tyra reached the quarry where Niklaus was going to do his ritual – but so far, the only thing that showed it was actually the right place was the small podium where a witch seeming had already set up what she needed for the ritual.

She looked around before making her way up a cliff. Tyra picked up Loki and set him down firmly on her shoulders, making sure he wouldn't fall off "Hold on, Lo'." With that, she started climbing, making herself as comfortable as possible on the hard stone that allowed her to oversee the whole Quarry without being visible to anyone at first glance. It was more than a little uncomfortable on her aching body but she would endure. Not for herself but for Niklaus.

Loki scrambled around and would have fallen off the side of the small cliff if Tyra hadn't caught him "Be careful," she admonished, holding against her side tightly "You best settle in. We're going to be here for a couple of hours."

'_Hours?_' Loki whimpered, burying his head in Tyra's neck.

"Hours," Tyra nodded, petting his head lightly "Try to sleep for a while. I'll make sure that you don't fall."

Loki hummed tiredly '_Yes, mama._'

As they settled in to wait, Tyra's mind drifted to the moment they had found out about Niklaus' real parentage and the reason why Mikael had been treating him the way he had.

_Flashback_

_Tyra was still reeling from having lost Henrik even if it had been over a year already. It still hurt and as such, when she heard Klaus' screams, she ran with Elijah behind her, trying to find out what was going on._

"_Niklaus," Elijah called, seeing his younger brother on the ground, his bones cracking._

_Klaus let out another scream, clenching his hands into the dirt "What is happening to me?"_

_Elijah went to run to him but before he could, Mikael was there, holding him back "Don't."_

"_Father," Niklaus pleaded "It hurts." He let out another scream, causing Tyra to run over to him, dropping to her knees next to him. She reached out to touch his shoulder as he threw his head back, his teeth becoming longer as his eyes turned into a yellow that equalled those of the wolves' she had seen that night… The night that Henrik was killed._

_Mikael shot forward, grabbing his youngest daughter's hair, dragging her away from Niklaus "He's a beast," he spat, shaking Tyra "An abomination and you would do well to stay away." Tyra let out a whimper, clutching her father's hand as he continued to pull at her hair._

"_Let her go," Elijah whispered deathly quiet, his eyes still locked onto his younger brother._

_Mikael rolled his eyes and shoved Tyra harshly, causing her to topple over before he stalked off without another word._

_Elijah moved over to his sister, holding out his hand "Here. Are you alright?"_

_Tyra got up without accepting his hand and shrugged. She looked over at Niklaus before hurrying away to where she knew Kol was waiting for her. If she was being honest, she didn't know what to think about what she had learned. She knew that Niklaus had always been a bit different and especially when she saw him that night… But she wouldn't have expected that Esther would cheat on her husband. Not in a million years did she expect that. They were perfect for each other and always had been. Mikael seemed to hate half of his children and Esther didn't care enough to speak up on their behalf._

_End Flashback_

'_Mum? Mum? Hurt?_' Loki was nudging at Tyra's cheek, trying to get her attention.

Tyra blinked a couple of times before she raised her hand to push Loki away from her face "I'm fine. I…"

Loki huddled close to her '_Bad thoughts, mama._'

"Yeah," Tyra whispered "I had bad thoughts."

* * *

"Can we talk?" the Doctor asked, leaning against the doorway of the kitchen where Donna was currently fixing herself a sandwich.

Donna looked over her shoulder and nodded "Do you want one too?"

The Doctor smiled lightly but shook his head, sitting down at the table "I'm fine, thanks."

"So, what do you want to talk about?" Donna asked "I didn't do anything wrong, did I?"

"No, no, no," the Doctor denied "It's just… I know that Tyra isn't being particularly… open to you but…"

Donna looked down at her sandwich and sighed "It's alright. I can't really blame her for having changed. I still don't know what happened and I won't pry."

"I just didn't want you to feel like you're not welcome," the Doctor sighed, running his hands through his hair.

Donna looked at him sympathetically "Tyra isn't the only one who is hurt, is she?" she noted, studying the Doctor closely.

"She got the worst of it," the Doctor explained "But no… A lot of people were hurt in the events… Martha, her family, another friend of mine and most of all Tyra."

"You don't have to say more," Donna pointed out "I'm just happy to be here right now. You two focus on recovering and I help as much as I can. We're friends, right?"

The Doctor smiled at her and nodded a little "Yeah, I suppose so."

"There's something I wanted to ask," Donna spoke up after swallowing a mouth full of sandwich "What's the deal with Loki? I mean, I wasn't going to say anything but what kind of dog has wings?"

"Loki is a bit special," the Doctor shrugged "He actually attached himself to Tyra when I was taking her on a trip to cheer her up. The planet where he is from has a lot of different races of dogs. Dogs with wings, dogs with no noses and I think they even have dogs with horns although I don't think we saw those…"

Donna bit her lip "He helps Tyra a lot, doesn't he? I mean, I noticed that she is calmer with him around. That and she constantly has him near."

The Doctor hummed "Yeah. It's gotten a lot better since Loki is with us." He got up from his chair and let out another sigh "Look, Tyra is getting better slowly… She is talking again, so there's that but there are a lot of things we still have to get through and now that you're here I just thought you should know. If she isn't comfortable, don't push her. Let her come to you. She likes having you around but is uncomfortable with people at the moment. Give her time and I'm sure she'll come around."

"I learned my lesson when I pushed her to talk to me last time," Donna snorted "It's just hard. Last time we met, she was so different."

"A lot happened," the Doctor agreed "But she is still the same person."

"I guess so," Donna nodded "Thanks for telling me. You didn't have to…"

The Doctor shrugged "I know. But it's only fair for you to know."

* * *

Tyra watched in curiosity when a couple of vampires approached with a witch hot on their heels "Put them over there," the witch gestured.

The vampires nodded, dropping the two women they had been dragging along. The older of the two let out a groan, clutching at her head "Oh, my head. What's wrong with me?"

Tyra narrowed her eyes on the two, recognising the younger of the two as Elena Gilbert – the Doppelgänger Damon had told her about "Do you remember what happened?"

"You called me," the older woman mumbled "You were so scared. Oh, ah, I should have realised that it wasn't you." She shivered "The second I walked out of the house, someone grabbed me. A vampire."

Elena nodded "Klaus. It was Klaus."

"He made me drink his blood," the woman breathed "And I don't… I don't remember anything after that." She turned to look around anxiously "Where are we? What happened?"

Tyra bit her lip. The woman was a newborn and the fact that she was clearly close to the Doppelgänger didn't make things better. She might not care about Elena or anyone she associated with, Tyra disliked involving people who didn't need to be involved. The woman had been Human… The only reason she was here was because Niklaus decided that she would make a good sacrifice. Tyra wouldn't interfere though. It wasn't her place. This was for Niklaus and Niklaus alone. After all, he had been waiting for so long. No matter how much she might disapprove, she could understand that he just wanted it to be over with.

Elena had grabbed the older woman's hands "We're at the quarry," she explained quietly, watching the witch standing at the small podium "He brought us here."

The woman frowned "Why don't I remember anything?"

"Jenna, do you remember… When I told you how someone becomes a vampire?"

Jenna tilted her head "Yeah, if you die with vampire blood in your system, it's…" She paused before letting out a sharp gasp "Oh, god. He killed me."

Elena shook her head, tightening her hands "Jenna, listen to me. Listen to me. Everything's going to be okay. I'm going to get you out of here."

"I'm a vampire?" Jenna breathed, her eyes wide.

The witch smirked and approached them "And I bet you're hungry." When the Doppelgänger made to attack her, she simply waved her hand, making Elena fly back and a circle of fire appear around her. The witch looked at the Doppelgänger, seeming more than a little amused at her display "Don't bother trying to get through. I spelt the circle. You're trapped. No matter what you do."

"Greta… Please, just – just let her go," Elena pleaded.

Greta grabbed the sharp rock that had fallen from Elena's hand and sliced her wrist open "Klaus chose her," she shrugged, lowering her wrist towards Jenna "Drink it."

Elena shook her head, standing as close to the flames as she dared "Jenna, don't!"

"I can't," Jenna cried out, turning away from the bloody wrist. Tyra looked at her with a hint of respect in her eyes. She was strong, that was for sure. Not many would have managed to turn away from blood at this stage in the transformation.

"Let her go," Elena snapped "Hey!" Jenna turned back to look at the wrist, licking her lips. Her eyes flashed to Elena before she sank her teeth into Greta's wrist "No! No."

After a few moments, Greta pulled her wrist out of Jenna's grip, causing the other woman to fall to the ground "That's enough."

"Jenna. It's going to be okay," Elena called out, trying to get her aunt to listen to her. Greta rolled her eyes, flicking her wrist to make another circle of fire surround the newly turned vampire. Elena watched Jenna retreat from the flames, staring at them in fear "Look at me. Hey, look at me." Jenna turned her head towards Elena, the blood she drank still running down her chin "It's gonna be okay. It's gonna be okay."

Jenna shook her head silently, mouthing "No" over and over again. Tyra buried her face in Loki's fur, not wanting to look at the scene. She felt sorry for the other woman. Not the Doppelgänger but the woman was an innocent. Damon had talked about her on occasion and told her that Jenna hadn't been aware of the supernatural until Klaus came to town. She had drawn the short straw by being related to the Doppelgänger but so had many others before her.

Tyra was feeding Loki treats, trying to ignore the Doppelgänger's frantic pacing. By now, she just wanted this whole thing over with so she could get back to the Tardis. Being here made her uncomfortable and even though they couldn't see her, she felt as if she was being stared at continuously. Tyra looked over when they started talking again "How are you feeling?"

Jenna shrugged "I feel like myself… Only not." She rubbed at her eyes in frustration "Everything is brighter. The fire's hotter. Part of me is terrified but there's another part of me that doesn't want to feel anything."

"Vampires can turn off the part that is Human," Elena spoke up quietly "That's the part that hurts."

"I'm gonna die, aren't I?" Jenna sniffled, her eyes filling with tears.

Elena shook her head harshly "No. Jenna, I'm not going to let that happen. I don't care what I have to do."

In the distance, the sound of twigs snapping was heard "Who's that?" Jenna asked, her head snapping toward the sound.

Elena shrugged "That must be the werewolf."

Greta reappeared between the trees, pushing another woman to the ground. The woman groaned, clutching her stomach "What's happening to me?" she slurred.

"I cast a spell to slow down your transformation," Greta told her "Your insides are trying to tear themselves free." She moved away without another glance, making a third ring circle around the werewolf.

"Greta," Elena called out "Witches are supposed to maintain the balance in nature. It's your duty to them to keep this curse sealed."

Great narrowed her eyes on the Doppelgänger "My duty is to Klaus. The new order."

"Glad to know I still have a dance partner," Klaus laughed, stepped out of the treeline. He turned to look at the three women "Hello, my lovelies. Are we ready?"

"Nik," Tyra breathed under her breath.

Loki's head popped up from where he had been dozing '_Brother?_'

Tyra nodded '_Yeah, he's my brother. One of them, at least. I'm sure you'll meet the others as well._'

"I've got the moonstone," Klaus murmured, moving over to stand by Greta "I spent five hundred years looking for this." He looked up and handed it over "I hate to part with it."

"The moon has passed its apex," Greta told him, holding the moonstone reverently "Remember everything you need to do?"

Klaus raised his eyebrow at her "I remember."

Tyra watched the ritual start from her place hidden on top of the cliff as the ritual started. She watched as who she assumed was Damon's brother – he did seem familiar – tried to get Klaus to let Jenna go. She watched as he killed Jenna and then bit into the Doppelgänger's neck, savouring every last drop.

Klaus eventually released Elena with blood dripping from his mouth. The flames in the bowl extinguished "I can feel it," Klaus panted, walking down the stone steps a little unsteadily "It's happening." He looked up at the full moon as his bones began to crack. His eyes turned yellow like a werewolf's with the black veins of a vampire underneath them "Yes, yes!"

Tyra flinched when Klaus was thrown through the air, landing close to where she was hiding just underneath the cliff face. Her head snapped up as the flames in the bowl reignited and another witch appeared from the hillside, chanting "_Phasmatos Infero Eseri Gratas, Disasustos Vom, Mas Pro Je Ta Sue Te. __Victamas Veras. Phasmatos Tribum, Niha Sue Exilum, Disasustos Vom, Mas Pro Je Ta Sue Te. Levam, Mina Sue Te, Disasustos Vom, Mas Pro Je Ta Sue Te. Phasmatos Veras. Fes Matos Tribum, Mas Pro Tes Unum. Victas Ex Melam, Phasmatos Vanem. Mas Pro Je Ta Sue Te._"

"No," Klaus gasped, shaking his head as he writhed on the ground "You were dead." The witch continued to chant as Tyra clutched Loki to her chest. She wanted to help her brother but she didn't want to reveal herself either, so she just kept watching.

"_Damon,_" she breathed as her friend appeared out of nowhere. She watched him cautiously but was distracted by another familiar figure stepping into the clearing.

"Elijah?" Klaus gasped when he saw his older brother walking up. His eyes darted around, trying to find a hint of Tyra. She had promised to be here but he couldn't see her anywhere.

Elijah looked down at Klaus who was staring up at him pleadingly "Hello, brother." He looked at him for another moment before punching his arm into Klaus' chest, grabbing his heart tightly "In the name of our family, Niklaus…"

"I didn't bury them at sea," Klaus gasped when his older brother started twisting his heart.

Elijah froze "What?"

Klaus shook his head and blinked back the tears that wanted to escape "Their bodies are safe. If you kill me, you'll never find them."

"Elijah. Don't listen to him," Stefan called out.

"Elijah… I can take you to them," Klaus murmured "I give you my word… brother." Elijah hesitated, his hand loosening.

Tyra carefully made her way down from the cliff, making sure to make as little sound as possible until she was on the other side of the flames, away from the group having their stare-off. After not really moving for so long, she had a bit of difficulty as her body protested the movement. It wasn't nearly as bad as it had been but it was still painful. She rushed off into the trees, until she stopped, leaning against a tree behind her.

Elijah had almost killed their brother. Elijah who had always been on Niklaus' side. Elijah who had daggered her and Kol repeatedly because they did things that Klaus didn't like… A part of her wondered what happened to make Elijah abandon their brother. She didn't blame Klaus for what he did anymore. He wanted them safe and sometimes the only way to ensure their safety was by putting them in boxes. It didn't mean that she agreed with him on the subject of Finn but that was another can of worms that she didn't feel like unburying at the moment.

A noise close to her made her head snap around and Loki whine in her arms. She shot up when a white-grey wolf appeared from between the trees. She hesitated for a moment before she knelt down in front of the wolf, holding out her hand for Niklaus to sniff before she started to pet him lightly. Klaus raised his muzzle to Tyra's stomach where she was holding Loki in her arms, causing Tyra to pull back a little "If you try to eat him, I'll never forgive you, Nik," she warned.

Klaus whined before going back to nosing at the puppy in his sister's arms. He froze when the pup scrambled over from Tyra's arms and onto his back, Loki's paws resting on his head.

Tyra looked at the scene with a small smile on her face when Loki started licking Klaus' ear. The two of them looked awfully cute together. She pulled out her phone and quickly snapped a picture, startling Klaus enough, so that he jerked, causing Loki to lose his balance and topple down the wolf's back with a confounded look. Tyra's lips twitched slightly as she picked Loki back up, scratching his ears "I'm happy for you, Nik. You deserved this, you know… Just promise me to be careful, okay?"

Klaus let out a small bark, licking at his sister's face before his ears twitched, his head turning around before he lobbed off further into the forest away from her.

Tyra walked back to the Tardis, replaying Elijah shoving his hand into Niklaus' chest over and over again. She had been so close to losing her brother again. So close to having everything that she worked so hard for undone by her own brother. While she hated thinking it, sometimes she was scared of Elijah. Despite the fact that Klaus had the worst anger issues out of all of them, Elijah was the one she was hesitant to trust again.

"Ty?" the Doctor called out quietly, seeing her walk into the Tardis with Loki sticking close to her side "Hey. How was it?"

Tyra looked up at him "I'm going to bed."

The Doctor blinked, looking after her before he turned to look at Donna "What are you waiting for, spaceman?" Donna asked, crossing her arms "Go after her. I'm going to bed."

"Right," he nodded and smiled at her "Goodnight, Donna. You know where your room is?"

"I think I can find it," she nodded, waving him off.

The Doctor hurried through the hallways until he reached his room. He didn't even remember when he had taken Tyra there for the first time but they both preferred his room over hers. It offered them both some security "Hey," he whispered, seeing her buried underneath a mound of blankets with Loki curled up in his bed "What happened? Is Niklaus alright?"

Tyra just stared at the wall for a moment longer before she nodded lightly.

"Come here," the Doctor mumbled, slipping into bed behind her, holding his arms open for her.

Tyra turned to look at him before she buried her face in his chest with a small sob "I almost lost him again, Doc."

"What do you mean?"

"Elijah… Elijah was there and he almost killed Nik," Tyra whispered "I don't know what I would have… I can't lose him."

The Doctor shook his head "You won't. He's a Hybrid now, right? You won't be losing him anytime soon."

Tyra nodded silently, resting her ear over his chest, listening to his hearts beating.

"Did I ever tell you what the necklace meant?" the Doctor asked, reaching down to fiddle with the charm he had given her.

"No… I forgot about that," she shook her head "What does it mean?"

The Doctor tilted her head up to catch her eyes "Eternally yours," he told her, leaning down to press a kiss to her lips "I'm yours, Ty. For as long as you'll have me. I love you."

"I love you, too," Tyra sniffed "And I'll be with you for as long as I can."

Tyra let out a small whine when her phone started ringing. She was comfortable and didn't want to move. It wasn't often that the Doctor stayed with her and she wanted to enjoy the moment as much as she could. Normally, he only stayed as long as it took for her to either fall into a light sleep or pretend to fall asleep. She couldn't even remember the last time she slept a full night.

"Are you going to answer that?" the Doctor asked.

"No," Tyra mumbled into his shoulder.

He poked her shoulder when the phone continued to ring "Either answer it or turn it off."

Tyra huffed and rolled off him, grabbing at the phone blindly. She was about to deny the call when she caught sight of the caller ID "Damon?"

"_Tyra?_" Damon rasped.

"Damon, what the hell is going on?" she asked, frowning at the wall. She had only seen him a couple of hours ago and he seemed fine then.

There was silence on the other end of the line until Damon shuffled "_I just wanted to hear your voice again._"

Tyra raised her eyebrow "Okay, now I know that something's going on. Tell me what happened."

"_Dammit, Sage. I told you that Tyra and I aren't like that,_" Damon mumbled "_Stop implying things just because you're married._"

"Sage? Wait, what are you talking about?"

The Doctor placed his hand on her shoulder "What's going on?"

Tyra shook her head "I have no idea. Damon is just… I don't even know."

"_Something's wrong, Ty…_" Damon whispered.

"You don't say," Tyra snorted, wrapping her arm around her stomach "Can you tell me what happened, Damon?"

Damon looked down at his arm and grimaced "_My arm hurts. Ty, I don't wanna die. I saw Rose die and I don't want that._"

Tyra rubbed at her forehead "Rose?" she asked in confusion "You mean Rosemarie? When did you meet her?"

"_Tyra?_" Damon asked in confusion, blinking at his phone "_When did you call?_"

"You were the one who called me, Damon," Tyra told him, worry swinging in her voice "What happened?"

"_I'm sorry,_" Damon breathed "_I didn't want you to know._"

Tyra gritted her teeth, slowly getting annoyed at him avoidance "Didn't want me to know what?"

"_I was bitten. Tyler Lockwood bit me._"

"Dammit, Damon," Tyra cursed "Just… Hold on, okay? I think I know someone who can help you."

Damon scoffed "_Nothing can help me,_" he slurred "_There is no cure._"

"Or so you think." Tyra hung up the phone and turned to bury into the Doctor's shoulder "Why do things always go wrong?"

He rubbed her back "I don't know. What are you going to do now?"

"Call my brother," she muttered, scrolling through her contacts.

**Hey, guys. I have a bit of a recommendation. A friend of mine recently started posting their Harry Potter/Doctor Who Fic and it's really good. If you're interested or want to check it out, look for The Return of the Wolf by Raven Mortem. She is on both FFN and AO3.**

**I also had a kind of idea I might or might not continue. It's a Reading Of Universal Vampire. Not sure if anyone would be interested in that but I kinda started and like the idea.**

**Nick**


	34. Fires of Pompeii

Tyra stepped out of the Tardis after the Doctor and Donna and immediately recoiled at all the people and the noise around her. Her fingers were itching to pet Loki but according to the Doctor, she had to leave him in the Tardis for this. She didn't even know why. They had dogs in Ancient Rome already but the Doctor made sure that Loki would stay behind, already stressing Tyra out before she even left the Tardis.

"Ancient Rome," the Doctor exclaimed before gesturing around "Well, not for them, obviously. To all intents and purposes, right now, this is brand new Rome."

Donna looked around with wide eyes "Oh, my God. It's – it's so Roman. This is fantastic." The Doctor let out a small laugh at her enthusiasm and looked over at her when she continued "I'm here, in Rome. Donna Noble in Rome. This is just weird. I mean, everyone here's dead."

"Well, don't tell them that," the Doctor mumbled, looking over at Tyra who still hadn't moved away from the Tardis. Disappointment coiled through his chest at her expression. He knew that he should have let her have Loki with her… That was what the dog was for after all but he wanted her to try and cope without him. Maybe it was too soon but he felt like he at least wanted her to try. It had already been close to a month since they dropped off Jack and Martha, so maybe he was right in taking this step. Tyra had been doing so much better recently and she even left the Tardis on her own to see her brother… That must count for something, right? But the look on her face made him doubt his decision.

"Hold on a minute," Donna exclaimed, whirling around to level a glare at the Doctor "That sign over there's in English. Are you having me on? Are we in Epcot?"

The Doctor turned away from watching Tyra for a moment, shaking his head "No, no, no. That's the Tardis translation circuits. Just makes it look like English. Speech as well. You're talking Latin right now."

"Seriously?" Donna gaped.

"Hm," the Doctor nodded, reaching out for the Tardis door to call for Loki.

Donna raised her hand to her mouth "I just said seriously in Latin… What if I said something in actual Latin? Like veni, vidi, vici? My dad said that when he came back from football. If I said veni, vidi, vici to that lot, what would it sound like?"

The Doctor blinked at her for a moment before he shrugged "I'm not sure," he mused "You have to think of difficult questions, don't you?"

Donna rolled her eyes at him "I'm going to try it." With that, she hurried off, leaving the Doctor and Tyra standing by the Tardis.

"Are you alright?" the Doctor asked, reaching out to touch Tyra's shoulder.

She flinched away from his hand, turning her face away "I'm fine," Tyra mumbled, wrapping her arms around her stomach.

The Doctor sighed and opened the Tardis door to find Loki already waiting, staring up at him. He winced when the feeling of annoyance and disappointment hit him like a sledgehammer but he chose not to mention it, feeling guilty enough as it was. Tyra had been doing so well up till now. Ever since they brought Loki onto the Tardis, so it hurt to see her taking steps in the wrong direction again. While he knew that recovery wasn't a straight line – that there were moments where it gets worse before it gets better – he wished that Tyra didn't have to go through this "Come on," he murmured, bending down to pick Loki up, checking on the collar he was already wearing.

"What are you doing?" Tyra asked, watching the Doctor in confusion.

"I… I was wrong," the Doctor admitted quietly, letting Loki go to hand Tyra his leash "I shouldn't have made you go out without him if you don't feel comfortable."

Tyra clenched the leash in her hand and shrugged "It's fine."

The Doctor shook his head "No, it's not. If I make you do things that you're uncomfortable with, tell me. I don't want you to hurt because of me."

"Thanks," Tyra smiled faintly with Loki pressing against her leg, comforting her while looking around the new environment curiously.

"How's he mean, Celtic?" Donna frowned, walking back over to them. She had noticed Loki but decided not to mention it. The dog had only been out of the Tardis for a couple of minutes and Tyra was already slightly more relaxed, so who was she to comment?

The Doctor cracked a small grin "Welsh. You sound Welsh." He shrugged lightly "There we are. Learnt something."

Donna nodded before looking down at her clothes "Don't our clothes look a bit odd?"

"Nah," the Doctor shook his head, holding out his hand for Tyra to take "Ancient Rome, anything goes. It's like Soho… but bigger."

"You've been here before, then?" Donna asked.

Tyra walked next to them, her hand unconsciously tightening around the leash, forcing Loki even closer to her. She felt like someone was watching them – then again, she had been feeling that way for a while now. It made her feel on edge constantly.

"Hm," the Doctor nodded "Ages ago." He stopped, looking at Donna "Before you ask, that fire had nothing to do with me. Well, a little bit. But I haven't got the chance to look around properly." They started to walk through the streets again "Coliseum, Pantheon, Circus Maximus. You'd expect them to be looming by now. Where is everything?" He frowned, looking around in confusion "Try this way."

"Not an expert," Donna spoke up, looking at the mountain in the distance "But there's seven hills of Rome, aren't there? How come they've only got one?"

The ground started shaking, causing the people around them to groan "Here we go again." They started hanging onto their stalls as pottery fell all around, breaking into pieces.

Donna let out a gasp "Wait a minute. One mountain with smoke. Which makes this…"

"Pompeii," the Doctor breathed "We're in Pompeii. And it's volcano day."

Tyra looked up at him "Didn't I tell you we'd end up here someday?"

The Doctor cursed under his breath "I had hoped you'd forget about the bet."

"What bet?" Tyra blinked, tilting her head.

"Ah," the Doctor winced "Erm…"

Tyra frowned, trying to recall what the Doctor was talking about. She remembered the conversation but couldn't quite remember the bet he was talking about. Every time she tried to grasp the memory, it seemed to slip away. This was also something that she had noticed more and more. Some of her memories were a bit scrambled and harder to recall "Oh, I think I remember now. You told me to think of something in case you lose."

"You bet on ending up here?" Donna asked, looking at the two of them in amusement "Why am I not surprised?"

"Hey," Tyra huffed lightly, crossing her arms as some of her old attitude shone through "I'm not the one who wanted Queen Victoria to say '_We are not amused_' and got banished."

Donna let out a laugh, looking at the Doctor "Oh, why can I see that happening?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes at the two of them but couldn't stop the grin that was threatening to break out on his face. Maybe bringing Loki was a good idea after all "Come on." He grabbed Tyra's hand, pulling her along as he ran back to where they had left the Tardis. Loki let out a yelp in surprise before speeding up to at least somewhat keep pace with them.

"You're kidding," Donna panted when she saw that the Tardis wasn't where they left her "You're not telling me the Tardis has gone."

"Okay," the Doctor shrugged as Tyra knelt down to pet Loki's fur. She was starting to panic again and the fact that the Tardis apparently vanished wasn't helping either.

Donna shot him a deadpan look "Where is it then?"

The Doctor held up his hands in surrender "You told me not to tell you."

"Oi," Donna huffed "Don't get clever in Latin."

The Doctor sighed "Hold on." He went up to the fruit seller whose stand was right next to where he had parked "Excuse me. Excuse me. There was a box. Big blue box. Big blue wooden box, just over there. Where's it gone?" His hands were waving through the air, miming along with his words.

"Sold it, didn't I?" the stallholder replied, going back to sorting items.

"But it wasn't yours to sell," the Doctor gaped, blinking at the stallholder rapidly. He turned to Donna, Tyra and back to the man, still not really sure why he sold his Tardis.

The stallholder looked at him in annoyance "It was on my patch, weren't it? I got fifteen sesterces for it. Lovely jubbly."

The Doctor groaned "Who did you sell it to?"

"Old Caecilius," the stallholder told him "Look if you want to argue, why don't you take it out with him? He's on Foss Street. Big villa. Can't miss it."

"Thanks," the Doctor nodded and walked away. He froze mid-step and turned back around "What did he buy a big blue wooden box for?"

* * *

Tyra was leaning against a wall, cuddling with Loki while the other two were running around like headless chicken, trying to find the street the stallholder had been talking about.

"I just can't get it out of my head," Donna muttered as she walked up to Tyra.

"What?" Tyra frowned, shifting to hold Loki more comfortably. The pup had complained about his paw falling asleep nonstop for the past couple of minutes.

Donna shot her a look "Do you not care that the volcano is supposed to kill everyone here?"

Tyra raised one of her shoulders "Donna, it's supposed to happen."

"But it's not fair," she exclaimed, drawing more attention to them than Tyra would have liked.

"Ha," the Doctor exclaimed, running over to Tyra and Donna "I've got it. Foss Street's this way."

"No," Donna shook her head "Well, I found this big sort of amphitheatre thing. We can start there. We can gather everyone together. Maybe they've got a great big bell or something we could ring. Have they invented bells yet?"

The Doctor blinked in confusion "What – What do you want a bell for?"

"To warn everyone," Donna started, looking at the Doctor as if it was obvious "Start the evacuation. What time does Vesuvius erupt? When's it due?"

"It's 79AD, twenty-third of August which makes volcano day tomorrow," the Doctor said, raising his eyebrow at Tyra who just shrugged and tuned out the conversation.

Donna nodded in satisfaction "Plenty of time. We could get everyone out easy."

"Yeah," the Doctor mumbled "Except we're not going to."

"But that's what you do," Donna gestured violently "You're the Doctor. You save people."

The Doctor shook his head "Not this time. Pompeii is a fixed point in history. What happens, happens. There is no stopping it."

"Says who?" Donna snapped before rounding on Tyra "Why aren't you saying anything? You can't want all these people to die."

Tyra looked up at her with wide eyes and took a step away from the loud voice directed at her. Loki yelped when her grip tightened on him before he started licking at her hands '_Okay? Mum okay? Human shouty._'

The Doctor stepped between the two and narrowed his eyes on Donna "Quiet down. And I say so."

Donna snorted "What, and you're in charge?"

"Tardis, Time Lord, yeah," the Doctor snapped.

"Donna, Human, no," Donna glared "I don't need your permission. I'll tell them myself."

Tyra backed away from them and slid down a wall near them. She buried her face in Loki's fur as her breathing picked up. The raised voices reminded her of Mikael and when he got angry at her again. They reminded her of when he was hurting her siblings and they were screaming, begging for him to stop.

The Doctor gestured around to the people who were starting to pay attention to their raised voices, neither of them noticing anything but their argument. They were oblivious to Tyra's panic and the looks they were starting to draw from the crowd "You stand in the marketplace announcing the end of the world, they'll just think you're a mad old soothsayer. Now, come on. Tardis. We're getting out of here."

"Well, I might just have something to say about that, Spaceman," Donna said, her voice quieting down a little.

The Doctor rolled his eyes with a sigh "Oh, I bet you will." He turned around to talk to Tyra when he noticed that she wasn't there. He whirled around, trying to find her when he noticed her curled into a ball against the corner of the wall they were standing by "Ty," he whispered, falling to his knees close to her.

Tyra shuddered, curling around Loki as she continued muttering incoherently. Her thoughts were circling around the memories of her siblings' screams, never really stopping long enough to make any sense to her. She was getting more and more overwhelmed by her own mind, the shouting and the noises. Tears leaked into Loki's fur as Mikael's voice started mocking her again. It never stopped long enough for her to catch a break. He was always there, always telling her that she was nothing. He told her that no one cared for her and that the Doctor would get sick of her sooner rather than later… Just like her siblings.

The Doctor wanted to reach out and pull her into his arms but experience told him that it was a very bad idea if she was unaware "Concentrate on your breathing, alright? Try to stay with me." He looked up at Donna for a moment before he turned back to Tyra "That's it. Continue controlling your breathing. You're doing so good."

Tyra leaned her head back and closed her eyes, trying to calm her breathing further. She turned to the side and looked at the Doctor "I want to go home."

The Doctor smiled slightly and held out his hand "Let's go, then."

* * *

Caecilius sighed in annoyance when the ground started shaking again "Positions," he called out, hurrying over to catch one of the marble busts that always fell.

"Whoa," the Doctor exclaimed when he caught the bust, seconds before Caecilius reached it "There you go."

Caecilius looked at the strangers before he inclined his head "Thank you, kind sir. I'm afraid business is closed for the day. I'm expecting a visitor."

"But that's me," the Doctor told him cheerfully "I'm a visitor. Hello."

"Who are you?" Caecilius frowned, tilting his head.

The Doctor hesitated for a moment before he came up with a name "I am Spartacus."

Donna nodded "So am I."

"What?" Tyra whispered to herself, shaking her head at them.

Caecilius' eyes lit up in understanding "Mister and Mrs Spartacus."

The Doctor shook his head immediately, wrapping his arm around Tyra "Oh no, no, no. We're not – we're not married."

"We're not together," Donna agreed.

Caecilius hummed, looking at Tyra with a hint of disapproval. This man – Spartacus – must either be blind or he must not be aware of the implications of that scar on the girl's face. It looked like a scar one of the warriors would carry, not a girl his daughter's age. A part of him wanted to speak up but the voice in his head whispered to him. He was curious of how she got that scar… Not only did he doubt that she was a warrior but also there was something in her eyes… Something haunted. It made him shiver internally at the pain and suffering and the tiredness he could see in her eyes.

With a bit of difficulty, Caecilius ripped his eyes away from Tyra "Oh, then brother and sister? Yes, of course," he nodded, trying to push back the curiosity to focus on the two Spartacus' "You look very much alike."

"Really?" Donna and the Doctor looked at each other in confusion, while Tyra just lowered her head. She had seen the look in the man's eyes and it made her want to hide away. How could she have been so stupid? She knew how people reacted to her face… It had happened more than once before. Why should it be any different in an age where it wasn't normal for a woman to be fighting?

Caecilius shook his head "I'm sorry but I'm not open for trade."

"And that trade would be?" the Doctor frowned, tilting his head.

"Marble," Caecilius pointed out, gesturing around himself to all the marble in his house "Lopus Caecilius. Mining, polishing and design thereof. If you want marble, I'm your man."

The Doctor patted his jacket, trying to find his psychic paper "That's good. That's good because I'm the marble inspector." He flashed the paper at them.

Tyra looked down at Loki, mouthing 'marble inspector?' at him in confusion. The Doctor had come up with a couple of rather interesting cover stories before but marble inspector was something she hadn't expected.

"By the gods of commerce," the woman breathed before rounding on her son "An inspection. I'm sorry, sir. I do apologise for my son." She grabbed the goblet from the boy's hands, emptying it out into the fountain close to her.

"Oi," the boy huffed, glaring up at his mother in annoyance.

Caecilius gestured for the woman to come closer "And this is my good wife, Metella. I must confess, we're not prepared for a…"

The Doctor waved him off before he could finish "Nothing to worry about. I'm – I'm sure you've got nothing to hide. Although, frankly, that object looks rather like wood to me."

"I told you to get rid of it," Metella hissed to her husband.

Caecilius huffed "I only bought it today."

"Ah, well," the Doctor shrugged "Caveat emptor."

"Oh, you're Celtic," Caecilius blinked in surprise "There's lovely."

The Doctor walked over to the Tardis, leaving Donna to move a little closer to Tyra "Can you believe it? Speaking Latin in Latin seems Celtic."

"Weirder things have happened," Tyra mumbled, leaning down to pick Loki up. She didn't like this house. The fact that there were too many corners and exits where people could be hiding was freaking her out. It was almost as bad as all the people out on the streets.

Donna looked over at Tyra, frowning in worry. There was something going on with her and she didn't like it. The red-haired woman had seen the way the man had looked at Tyra earlier… "Are you alright?"

Before Tyra could answer, the Doctor spoke up, running his hand over the Tardis' door "I'm sure it's fine but I might have to take it off your hands for a proper inspection."

Donna took that as her clue, walking over to the Doctor "Although while we're here, wouldn't you recommend a holiday, Spartacus?"

"Don't know what you mean, Spartacus," the Doctor shot back quietly.

"Oh, this lovely family," Donna told him with a glare "Mother and father and son. Don't you think they should get out of town?"

Caecilius frowned at them "Why should we do that?"

Donna almost threw up her hands in frustration "Well, the volcano for starters."

"What?"

"Volcano."

Caecilius shook his head "What ano?"

Tyra looked at them uncomfortable, petting Loki with shaky hands. She wanted to say something, explain what was going on to Donna but a part of her was scared to speak up. Especially with the way the woman had reacted earlier. She knew that Donna wouldn't hurt her but she was still scared of her temper. The shouting kept reminding her of Mikael and she could really do without any more Flashbacks today.

"Oh, Spartacus, for shame." The Doctor grabbed Donna's arm, pulling her over to where a small altar was standing in an alcove "We haven't even greeted the household gods yet."

Caecilius looked after them for a moment before his gaze fell on the other girl who was still standing near their front door. He was a bit surprised to see the white dog in her arms. Had the dog been there earlier? He hadn't noticed anything "I'm afraid I didn't get your name earlier, Miss."

Tyra flinched in surprise. She hadn't expected anyone to talk to her. Her eyes darted over to look at the man before she looked down again "Tyra," she mumbled, hoping that the Doctor would hurry and finish talking to Donna.

"Announcing," a man called, appearing in the doorway behind Tyra.

She whirled around, backing away from the door hurriedly, tripping over her own feet. The only reason she didn't land on her backside was the hand that reached out to steady her "Are you alright?" the boy – Caecilius' son asked, taking a couple of steps back as soon as he saw that Tyra was steady enough.

"Thank you," Tyra whispered, sending him a small smile before the Doctor came up to wrap his arm around her waist again.

"Lucius Petrus Dextrus," the man who had entered continued "Chief Augur of the City Government." A middle-aged man entered, his cloak covering the complete right half of his body.

"Lucius," Caecilius greeted "My pleasure, as always."

Metella looked over at her son who had just taken a seat again and hissed at him "Quintus, stand up."

"A rare and great honour, sir," Caecilius continued "For you to come to my house." He holds out his hand for the man to shake.

Lucius looked at the hand for a moment "The birds are flying north and the wind is in the west."

"Quite," Caecilius smiled unsurely "Absolutely… That's good, isn't it?"

"Only the grain of wheat knows where it will grow," Lucius replied.

Caecilius wrapped his arm around his wife's shoulders "There now, Metella. Have you ever heard such wisdom?"

"Never," she shook her head "It's an honour."

Caecilius caught sight of the Doctor and the two women "Pardon me, sir," he said to Lucius "I have guests. This is Spartacus and – er – Spartacus and Tyra."

"A name is but a cloud upon a summer wind," Lucius dismissed, not interested in anything Caecilius had to say.

The Doctor took a step towards him "But the wind is felt most keenly in the dark."

Lucius raised his eyebrows "Ah. But what is the dark, other than an omen of the sun?"

"I concede," the Doctor murmured "That every sun must set."

"Ha."

A smile stole its way across the Doctor's face "And yet the son of the father must also rise."

"Damn," Lucius muttered "Very clever, sir. Evidently, a man of learning."

"Oh, yes. But don't mind me," the Doctor waved off "Don't want to disturb the status quo."

Caecilius leaned closer to Lucius "He's Celtic."

"We'll be off in a minute," the Doctor told them.

Donna stared at him stubbornly "I'm not going."

Caecilius ignored their argument. He had a feeling that it wasn't the first time this happened. Not after their exchange previously. Now that he had seen more of the curious group, he wasn't sure what to think of the youngest one. The girl. There was something wrong, something had happened to her and her reactions had proven it. Caecilius shook his head. He really had to stop getting lost in his thoughts "It's ready, sir."

"You've got to," the Doctor hissed at Donna "Why do you have to be so difficult? Tyra doesn't have a problem with leaving."

"Well, I'm not her, am I?" Donna snapped.

Caecilius gestured for Quintus to pull off the cloth from his creation "The moment of revelation. And here it is." The Doctor pulled both Tyra and Donna towards the Tardis, throwing one last glance over his shoulder. What he saw there, made him freeze "Exactly as you specified," Caecilius continued "It pleases you, sir?"

"As the rain pleases the soil," Lucius gave back, looking at the marble tile in satisfaction.

"Oh, now that's different," the Doctor remarked, taking a couple of steps away from the Tardis to look at the tile more closely "Who designed that, then?"

"My Lord Lucius was very specific," Caecilius explained, looking proud of himself.

The Doctor stared at Lucius curiously "Where did you get the pattern?"

"On the rain and mist and wind," Lucius shrugged.

Donna was still blinking at the marble tile "But that looks like a circuit."

"Made of stone," the Doctor added.

"Do you mean you just dreamt that thing up?" Donna asked, completely flabbergasted.

Lucius looked at her for a moment before turning his attention away "That is my job," he stated arrogantly "As City Augur."

"What's that, then?" Donna demanded "Like the mayor?"

The Doctor winced and pulled her away from the crowd "Oh, ha," he told the people in the room "You must excuse my friend, she's from… Barcelona." He turned to Donna and continued talking to her quietly "No, but this is an age of superstition. Of official superstition. The Augur is paid by the city to tell the future. The wind will blow from the west? That's the equivalent of ten o'clock news."

"They're laughing at us," a girl's voice spoke up. Tyra turned to look at the girl who had entered. She looked bad. Sweaty, pale and close to collapsing "Those two, they use words like tricksters. They're mocking us."

The Doctor shook his head "No, no, I'm not. I meant no offence."

"I'm sorry," Metella spoke up, hurrying over to her daughter "My daughter's been consuming the vapours."

Quintus looked at his sister with barely hidden shock "Oh for gods, mother. What have you been doing to her?"

"Not now, Quintus," Caecilius hissed at the boy.

"Yeah, but she's sick," he gestured "Just look at her."

Lucius ignored the commotion, his eyes trained on Evelina "I gather I have a rival in this household. Another with the gift."

"Oh, she's been promised to the Sibylline Sisterhood," Metella explained, wrapping her hands around her daughter's arms "The say she has remarkable visions."

"The prophecies of women are limited and dull," Lucius sneered "Only the menfolk have the capacity for true perception."

Donna looked at him disgustedly "I'll tell you where the wind's blowing right now, mate," he grumbled.

A small tremor ran through the building, causing Lucius to glare at Donna "The Mountain God marks your words. I'd be careful if I were you."

"Consuming the vapours, you say?" the Doctor questioned, tilting his head at Evelina.

"They give me strength," she explained.

The Doctor looked at Evelina critically "It doesn't look like it to me."

"Is that your opinion as a doctor?" Evelina asked, swaying on her feet.

"I beg your pardon?" the Doctor asked, his face betraying his surprise.

"Doctor. That's your name."

The Doctor took a step closer "How did you know that?"

"And you," Evelina turned to Donna, slumping a little into her mother's side "You call yourself Noble."

"Now then, Evelina," Metella chided, helping to steady her daughter "Don't be rude."

"No, no, no, no," the Doctor shook his head "Let her talk."

Evelina looked at the three travellers "You came from so far away…"

Lucius looked at Evelina in something akin to disgust "The female soothsayer is inclined to invent all sort of vagaries."

"Oh, not this time, Lucius," the Doctor disagreed "No, I reckon you've been out-soothsayed."

"Is that so, man of Gallifrey?" the Augur spat.

"What?"

Lucius squinted his eyes "The strangest of images. Your home is lost in fire, is it not?"

Donna stepped forward, grabbing the Doctor's arm as Tyra backed towards the Tardis "Doctor, what are they doing?" Donna whispered.

Lucius' eyes snapped to her "And you, daughter of… London."

"How does he know that?" she breathed, her eyes widening.

"This is the gift of Pompeii," Lucius stated grandly before his eyes caught sight of Tyra who was now almost pressed against the side of the Tardis "Now, you… You are interesting."

The Doctor followed his line of sight and paled "Stop it."

"The daughter of… Mikael," Lucius continued, causing Tyra to flinch violently enough that her grip on Loki loosened. The puppy fell to the floor with a small yelp before he started growling at the man who was hurting his mum "The abandoned child. Singled out and unloved by her parents."

"Stop it," the Doctor snapped, stepping between the two. He was close to attacking Lucius if he didn't stop talking. He didn't care if the man brought up Gallifrey, he could care less if he knew everything about the Time War but he wouldn't stand for the man hurting Tyra more than she already was hurting.

Lucius rolled his eyes before turning back to Donna "Daughter of London, there is something on your back."

"What's that mean?" Donna asked, looking over her shoulder in panic. She relaxed a little when she didn't see anything and turned to look at the Doctor.

Evelina cut in "Even the word Doctor is false. Your real name is hidden. It burns in the stars, in the Cascade of Medusa herself. You are a Lord, sir. A Lord of Time." That was the last thing that came out of her mouth before she fainted.

"Evelina," Metella screeched, sinking to the ground with her daughter on her lap.

"Tyra," the Doctor gasped, hurrying over to her. He froze when Loki growled at him "Loki… I'm trying to help."

Loki bared his teeth at the man who was trying to get closer, not really registering who he was. His head was hurting as well as his paw. He let out a whimper when he put weigh on his hurting paw '_Ow,_' he winced.

"You're hurt," the Doctor whispered, crouching down in front of the dog "Loki, let me help."

'_Crazy Hair?_' Loki asked, tilting his head up.

The Doctor snorted and reached out his hand. He picked Loki up and handed him over to Donna who was hovering behind him anxiously "Here. Hold him for a moment, would you? Don't let him move his right front paw. I'll check on Tyra."

Donna nodded, shooting a worried look at the frozen vampire "I'll go and check on Evelina if that's okay?"

"Sure," the Doctor nodded "But keep an ear out. I might need Loki here…"

"I will," Donna told him softly before walking in the direction that Metella had taken her unconscious daughter.

As soon as she was out of sight, the Doctor let out a small sigh, once again mentally hitting himself for doing this to Tyra. It was like she was getting worse whenever they went out and things went to hell. He couldn't keep doing that to her. While he wanted to help her through this, he couldn't just lock her into the Tardis but taking her along seemed to be just as bad of an idea. Maybe it was time to take her to Jack… As much as he disliked the idea, what other choice did he have? He couldn't stand seeing Tyra hurting.

"Is she alright?"

The Doctor whirled around to see Quintus' worried expression. He smiled weakly and shrugged "She does that," he murmured, turning to look at Tyra "Don't worry. She'll be alright."

"But what happened?" Quintus asked.

"Something… something bad happened a while ago and we have been dealing with it," the Doctor explained, gesturing vaguely.

Quintus bit his lip. He might have been a bit of an ass but he could see that the girl was everything but alright. She couldn't be older than Evelina but the look in her eyes… Her eyes made her seem so old and tired. Similar to the Doctor really. Both he and the girl were a mystery to him "Shouldn't you do something?"

"Yes, yes" the Doctor nodded "Right you are, Quintus." He bit his lip and took a step closer to Tyra "You're alright, you're fine, Tyra."

Tyra could hear a faint voice trying to cut through the nightmares she was seeing but it was too far away. She shivered when Mikael's laughter echoed through her mind and he started mocking her "_What are you going to do, little haukr?_"

"_I'm going to kill you," she spat, glaring up at him. It had not been too long since Niklaus had died and Mikael had only just gotten rid of the burnt body. She wasn't sure how long she had stared at her older brother before he was gone but it was done._

_Mikael laughed in dark amusement "How are you going to do that, then? You're weak, girl. I should have drowned you along with that abomination your mother created." He stepped closer to her, running a gentle hand down his youngest child's face "Why couldn't you be like your sisters?"_

_A flash over Mikael's shoulder made Tyra's eyes widen "Freya," Tyra whispered without meaning to. The name just slipped from her lips before she could stop herself. There, in the corner, was her oldest sister. The same sister she had only seen once in the other universe. How was she here?_

"_How do you know that name?" Mikael snarled, shoving Tyra against the wall by her throat, making the shackles bite deeper into her flesh._

_Tyra swallowed, staring into her father's hate-filled eyes "I – I…"_

_Mikael snorted, letting go of her "I have ways of making you talk, girl. Don't tempt me."_

"_Tyra," _a voice called out, cutting through the illusion that was playing in front of her eyes "Come on, love. Breathe. I got you."

She knew that voice. Tears filled her eyes as she blinked rapidly as the world around her swam into focus "Doctor?" she whispered, her voice cracking.

"I'm here," he told her "I'm here."

"That man…"

The Doctor shook his head "He's gone. It's alright."

Tyra let out a small sob, throwing herself into the Doctor's arms "I saw him again… I'm scared," she bit her lip hard enough to draw blood "What if he finds me again."

"He won't," the Doctor soothed, knowing exactly who she was talking about "He's gone, Tyra. He can't hurt you anymore."

* * *

Tyra looked up at Quintus with a shy smile when he held out a goblet with water for her "Thank you," she whispered.

Quintus nodded at her "You're welcome." He hesitated for a moment "Are you well?"

"I'm fine," Tyra told him, looking down at the surface of the water, her hand clenching and unclenching around the cup. She hated being weak. She hated that everyone had seen her breaking down. The only reason she didn't go and hide in the Tardis was because the Doctor didn't let her. Speaking of the man, she looked over, seeing him fiddling with the hypocaust grill on the other side of the room.

"Different sort of hypocaust?" he asked.

Caecilius who was kneeling on the marble next to the Doctor nodded "Oh, yes. We're very advanced in Pompeii. In Rom, they're still using the old wood-burning furnaces but we've got hot springs leading from Vesuvius itself."

The Doctor raised his eyebrows "Who thought of that?"

"The soothsayers," Caecilius explained "After the great earthquake seventeen years ago. An awful lot of damage. But we rebuilt."

"Didn't you think of moving away?" the Doctor asked, making Tyra's head snap around in surprise. He grimaced when he noticed her look "Oh no, then again, San Francisco."

Caecilius tilted his head in confusion "That's a new restaurant in Naples, isn't it?"

"What's that noise?" the Doctor frowned, peering down into the long well-like tunnel.

"Don't know," Caecilius shook his head "Happens all the time. They say the gods of the Underworld are stirring."

The Doctor narrowed his eyes, his thoughts whirling "But after the earthquake, let me guess. Is that when the soothsayers started making sense?"

"Oh, yes, very much so," Caecilius nodded. It had been a little strange but who was he to argue with them? They did – after all – know of the future "I mean, they'd always been, shall we say, imprecise? But then the soothsayers, the augurs, the haruspex, all of them, they saw the truth again and again. It's quite amazing. They can predict crops and rainfall with absolute precision."

The Doctor and Tyra exchanged a look. A part of him was really glad that Donna wasn't in the room at the moment. He could understand where she was coming from but didn't she think that he would save them if he could? There was nothing he could do for the people of Pompeii. Vesuvius' eruption was a fixed point in time. One of the most important fixed points at that. Speaking of… "Haven't they said anything about tomorrow?"

"No," Caecilius blinked slowly "Why, should they?" A bit of panic welled up at him. What did this stranger know? "Why do you ask?"

The Doctor closed his eyes for a moment "No, no. No reason. I'm just asking. But the soothsayers, they all consume the vapours, yeah?"

Caecilius hummed in agreement "That's how they see."

"Ipso facto," the Doctor muttered to himself.

"Look you," Caecilius started, getting annoyed with the man.

The Doctor reached into the vat and frowned "They're all consuming this."

"Dust?"

"Tiny particles of rock," the Doctor explained, licking his finger "They're breathing in Vesuvius."

Caecilius let out a shaky breath "Excuse me. I have to check on Evelina."

The Doctor nodded, watching him leave before walking over to where Tyra was sitting not too far from Quintus "Are you alright?" the Doctor asked, sitting down next to her.

"Yeah… I – Where's Loki?" she asked, noticing that her pup was nowhere to be found.

"He's with Donna," the Doctor explained "He is a bit hurt, so I thought it would be best for him to stay out of the way for now.

Tyra stiffened "Hurt how?"

"Ty…"

"No," she shook her head, jumping up "What happened?"

The Doctor looked up at her, his eyes begging her to drop this. When she only crossed her arms, he groaned "You dropped him by accident. It wasn't your fault…"

"You don't get it," she whispered, wrapping her arms around herself "I hurt him… He's been helping me and I hurt him."

"Ty, it's not your fault."

She looked at him for a moment before backing away further. Where was he? She needed to see that Loki was alright… That she hadn't hurt him too much. It was something she had been afraid of. She kept hurting the ones she cared about… No matter how hard she tried. Mikael was right. She was useless "Loki," she breathed, snatching the white puppy out of Donna's arms.

"Tyra…"

Tyra looked up, glancing from Donna to Evelina before lowering her head "Sorry. I just…"

Evelina smiled at the girl "Is he yours?"

"His name is Loki," Tyra told her quietly.

"It's a really nice name," Evelina nodded "I'm sorry – About my part earlier. I couldn't stop myself."

Donna shook her head and placed her hand on the girl's arm "It's not your fault."

Tyra looked at Donna before she looked down at Loki who was looking up at her "I'm so sorry, Loki."

'_Mama, okay?_' he asked, no hint of blame in his tone.

"I should be asking you that," she mumbled, running her hand down his front paw.

Loki let out a small wince before he seemingly shrugged '_Sore. Not bad._'

Tyra let a small smile cross her face "it's still my fault. If I had been stronger…"

'_No,_' Loki barked '_You didn't do anything wrong. You hurt. It's alright._'

"Did you just…" Tyra's eyes widened when she realised that Loki's sentences had become more coherent.

"How do I look?" Donna asked, walking towards the two girls in the purple dress that Metella had lend her. Tyra blinked in surprise. She hadn't even noticed that Donna had left. Evelina, on the other hand, let out a small laugh when Donna played with a shawl "You're not supposed to laugh. Thanks for that." She wrapped the shawl around her neck and grinned "What do you think? The Goddess Venus?"

Evelina giggled "Oh, that's sacrilege."

"Nice to see you laugh, though," Donna teased, sitting down on the bed next to Evelina. She had even seen Tyra's lips twitch which Donna considered to be a small victory "What do you do in old Pompeii, then, girls your age? You got mates? Do you go hanging about round the shops? TK Maximus?"

Evelina shook her head, a sad smile gracing her lips "I am promised to the Sisterhood for the rest of my life."

Donna frowned "Do you get any choice in that?"

"It's not my decision," Evelina sighed "The Sisters chose for me. I have the gift of sight."

Tyra chewed on her lower lip, wondering whether she should speak up. Loki nudged her hand encouragingly "I know the feeling of not getting a choice," she said quietly, making the other two look at her.

"What do you mean?" Evelina asked curiously.

Tyra shrugged "I never really had a say when I was younger. I didn't have a choice in being a girl… I didn't have a choice in learning my mother's art… I didn't have a say in what happened after my – after my twin brother died. And then, all of a sudden, I was free. Free to do whatever I liked to do. My brothers supported me more the most part when they remembered that I existed… But there was always a shadow upon us. If you don't want to be a part of them, then you shouldn't have to."

"That is more than I heard you say in a while," Donna spoke up.

"Yeah," Tyra whispered, looking at her lap. Her fingers came up to play with Loki's ears.

Donna turned back to Evelina when a thought hit her "If you can see the future… What can you see happening tomorrow?"

Evelina frowned in confusion "Is tomorrow special?"

"You tell me," Donna pointed out "What do you see?"

Evelina thought for a moment, closing her eyes "The sun will rise, the sun will set. Nothing special at all."

Donna placed her hand on the girl's knee "Look, don't tell the Doctor I said anything because he'll kill me but I've got a prophecy too."

"Donna," Tyra said, trying to stop the other woman from saying any more than she already had "Don't."

"They have a right to know," she hissed as Evelina covered her eyes "Evelina, I'm sorry, you've got to hear me out." When it looked like she wasn't listening, Donna tried again "Evelina, can you hear me? Listen."

"There's only one prophecy," Evelina shook her head, her eyes still covered.

Tyra stood up, swallowing at the scene before her. She didn't like this "Donna, stop it."

"Shut up, Tyra," Donna snapped with a glare, making Tyra flinch back. Donna's voice softened when she continued to talk to Evelina "Everything I'm about to say to you is true, I swear. Just listen to me. Tomorrow, that mountain is going to explode. Evelina, please listen. The air is going to fill with ash and rocks, tons and tons of it and this whole town is going to get buried."

Evelina shook her head again, her voice betraying her panic "That's not true."

"I'm sorry," Donna whispered "I'm really sorry but everyone's going to die. Even if you don't believe me, just tell your family to get out of town. Just for one day. Just for tomorrow. But you've got to get out. You've got to leave Pompeii."

"This is false prophecy," Evelina proclaimed.

* * *

It was a little while later when the whole house started shaking violently. Evelina looked at the other two with wide eyes before hurrying out of her room and over to where her parents were huddled together.

"What is it?" Metella breathed, clutching at her husband's arm "What's that noise?"

"Doesn't sound like Vesuvius," Caecilius shook his head.

The Doctor ran in, barely stopping in time "Caecilius? All of you, get out."

"Doctor," Donna called out, her hand clutching Tyra's forearm in fear "What is it?"

"I think we're being followed," the Doctor pointed out, looking over his should sheepishly. He flinched backwards when the hypocaust grill went flying "Just get out."

His words were ignored though as they stood, staring as the floor around the hypocaust cracked. A creature made from stone and fire climbed out of the whole, standing tall enough to nearly touch the ceiling. Evelina whimpered a little "The gods are with us."

"Water," the Doctor breathed "We need water. Quintus. All of you, get water. Donna!"

The man who had announced Lucius earlier stepped forwards with a bow "Blessed are we to see the gods." The fire creature turned to him, breathing out a large flame that reduced the man to ash instantly.

Tyra froze, staring at the ash "Nik," she breathed out shakily. Before her eyes flashed moments from the year. Niklaus had burned, so had she, Jack and her siblings. Mikael had – Mikael had made a joke out of setting Rebekah, Kol and Finn on fire before he daggered them again. It hadn't killed them but all she could see was Niklaus burning as she was tied to a wall.

"Talk to me," the Doctor called out, stepping between the creature and everyone else "That's all I want. Just tell me who you are. Don't hurt these people."

Donna ran back through the door next to Tyra with a bucket of water when both her and Tyra were grabbed by the Sisterhood. While Donna trashed in their grip, Tyra barely noticed as they were dragged away. She was too caught up in her own mind to notice anything that was going around her. Her eyes were glassy, seeing things that weren't here as her mind cycled through many of her most feared memories. They never stopped long enough for her to make sense of them but she was scared. That's all she remembered being. Scared of everything.

* * *

Donna stared up at the woman who had tied her to the altar she was lying on and groaned "You have got to be kidding me…" She looked over to see Tyra standing frozen where they had left her, her hands tied "Ty, now would be the moment for you to snap out of it."

"The false prophet will surrender both her blood and her breath," Spurrina, one of the Sisterhood hissed, glaring at Donna "She and that other one."

Donna snorted "I'll surrender you in a minute. Don't you dare."

"You will be silent," Spurrina snapped, gesturing for her sisters "Bring the other one."

Tyra flinched when someone grabbed her arm, blinking at the scene around her. She swallowed, desperately trying to find Loki. She didn't know what was happening and it made panic well up inside of her.

"Oh, thank God," Donna sighed "Tyra. Untie me, please."

Spurrina groaned in annoyance "Be silent."

"That will be the day," the Doctor chuckled, leaning against a pillar close to the entrance.

The Sisterhood stepped back, looking at the Doctor with wide eyes "No man is allowed to enter the Temple of Sibyl."

"Well, that's alright," the Doctor shrugged, wrapping his arm around Tyra "Just us girls. Do you know, I met the Sibyl once… Yeah, hell of a woman." A wistful look flashed across the Doctor's face for a moment "Blimey, she could dance the Tarantella. Nice teeth. Truth be told, I think she had a bit of a thing for me." He blinked, grinning down at Tyra sheepishly "Not that it matters much. Sorry."

Tyra rested her head against his shoulder "How many people fancied you?"

"Don't ask," he pleaded "It doesn't matter anymore."

"Hm," Tyra hummed, letting her eyes drift close. She let out a small yawn before she froze "Where – Where's Loki?"

The Doctor pressed a kiss to the smaller girl's hair "He's fine. He's with Evelina."

"Oi," Donna cried out.

The Doctor's attention snapped back to Donna as he rubbed the back of his head "Ah, right. You alright there?"

"Oh, never better," Donna deadpanned.

"I like the toga," the Doctor smiled.

Donna raised her eyebrow at him. Was he serious? "Thank you." She tugged at her hands "And the ropes?"

"Yeah, not so much." The Doctor pointed at the ropes with his sonic, cutting them easily.

"How come it does rope but not wood?" Tyra asked quietly. She was feeling safer now that the Doctor was there but the whole situation still had her more than a little uncomfortable. There was something weird going on here and she didn't like it. The bad memories were still swirling around at the forefront of her mind. She was trying to wrestle them back but something prevented her. Nothing she was trying worked and it freaked her out.

Spurrina gasped when Donna sat up, brushing off the ropes "What magic is this?"

"Let me tell you about the Sibyl, the founder of this religion," the Doctor started, looking at the Sisterhood seriously "She would be ashamed of you. All her wisdom and insight turned sour. Is that how you spread the word, hey? On the blade of a knife?"

"Yes," Spurrina smirked and went to lunge at the Doctor "A knife that now welcomes you."

"Show me this man," the voice of the High Priestess sounded from behind the curtains of the bed.

Spurrina's eyes widened as she whirled around "High Priestess, the stranger would defile us."

"Let me see," the High Priestess demanded "This one is different. He carries starlight in his wake."

"Oh," the Doctor smiled lightly "Very perceptive. Where do these words of wisdom come from?"

The High Priestess let out a small, breathy laugh "The gods whisper to me."

The Doctor shook his head "They've done far more than that. Might I beg audience? Look upon the High Priestess?"

Two sisters drew back the veil, revealing the High Priestess. Donna let out a loud gasp, staring at the woman who seemed to be completely made from stone "Oh, my God. What's happened to you?"

"The heaves have blessed me," the High Priestess whispered.

"If I might?" the Doctor asked quietly, holding out his hand for her to take. The High Priestess carefully reached out with her own arm "Does it hurt?"

The High Priestess shrugged "It is necessary."

"Who told you that?" the Doctor frowned.

"The voices."

Donna swallowed, still mustering the High Priestess "Is that what's going to happen to Evelina? Is this what's going to happen to all of you?"

Spurrina showed Donna her forearm that was also made from stone "The blessings are manifold."

"They're stone," Donna breathed.

The Doctor hummed "Exactly. The people of Pompeii are turning to stone before the volcano erupts. But why?"

"This word," the High Priestess frowned, tilting her head "This image in your mind. This volcano. What is that?"

The Doctor blinked "More to the point, why don't you know about it? Who are you?"

"High Priestess of the Sibylline."

"No, no, no, no," the Doctor shook his head "I'm talking to the creature inside you. The thing that's seeding itself into a human body, in the dust, in the lungs, taking over the flesh and turning it into, what?"

The High Priestess' eyes widened "Your knowledge is impossible."

"Oh, but you can read my mind," the Doctor pointed out "You know it's not. I demand you tell me who you are."

The High Priestess opened her mouth, another voice overlapping with hers "We are awakening."

"The voice of the gods," Spurrina gasped, falling to her knees.

The sisters did the same, looking up at the High Priestess reverently "Words of wisdom, words of power," they chanted "Words of wisdom, words of power. Words of wisdom…"

"Name yourself," the Doctor snapped "Planet of origin. Galactic coordinates. Species designation according to the universal ratification of the Shadow Proclamation."

"We are rising," the High Priestess cried out.

The Doctor rolled his eyes "Tell me your name."

"Pyrovile," the High Priestess croaked out.

The sisters bowed, continued chanting "Pyrovile. Pyrovile. Pyrovile."

Donna raised her eyebrow "What's a Pyrovile?"

"Well, that's a Pyrovile," the Doctor gestured "Growing inside her. She's a halfway stage."

"What and that turns into…?"

The Doctor pointed over his shoulder "That thing in the villa. That was an adult Pyrovile."

"And the breath of a Pyrovile will incinerate you, Doctor," the High Priestess smirked.

The Doctor pulled Tyra behind him and stood in front of her and Donna. He grabbed a yellow water pistol from his pocket "I warn you, I'm armed. Donna, get that grill open."

"What for?" Donna asked.

The Doctor shot her a look "Just…"

"I'll do it," Tyra mumbled, skirting around the chanting women on the floor.

"What are the Pyrovile doing here?" the Doctor questioned.

"We fell from the heavens," the High Priestess pointed out "We fell so far and so fast, we were rendered into dust."

The Doctor raised his eyebrows "Right, creature of stone shattered on impact. When was that, seventeen years ago?"

"We have slept beneath for thousands of years."

"Okay, so seventeen years ago woke you up," the Doctor nodded "And now you're using human bodies to reconstitute yourselves. But why the psychic powers?"

The High Priestess raised her head "We opened their minds and found such gifts."

The Doctor snorted "Okay, that's fine. So, you force yourself inside a Human brain, use the latent psychic talent to bond. I get that, I get that, yeah… But seeing the future? That is way beyond psychic. You can see through time. Where does the gift of prophecy come from?"

"Got it," Tyra said from near one of the walls.

The Doctor glanced at her for a moment "Donna, go and get down there. You too, Ty."

Donna glanced into the hole "What, down there?"

"Yes, down there," he shot back "Ty, make sure she actually goes." The Doctor narrowed his eyes on the Sibylline "Why can't this lot predict a volcano? Why is it being hidden?"

Spurrina's head shot up "Sisters, I see into his mind. The weapon is harmless."

The Doctor shrugged "Yeah, but it's going to sting." He squirted the water at the High Priestess, causing her to scream in pain "Get down there."

As soon as the three of them were inside the Hypocaust, Donna turned to face the Doctor "You fought her off with a water pistol. I bloody love you."

"This way," the Doctor gestured, linking his fingers with Tyra's. He could see her struggling, wincing whenever she moved the wrong way and the fact that she was being quiet was making him want to say something but he had seen the way Donna was acting towards Tyra this adventure and he really didn't want to cause more problems for Tyra. He would talk to Donna later and tell her some basic rules for travelling with him. While she agreed to look out for Tyra, she couldn't just choose when to do it and when to ignore her or shout at her. It didn't work that way and if he had to bring her home, he would. Tyra was his priority. Hell, he would give up on his adventures, no matter how hard it would be for him to stay in one place… He would try for her.

"Where are we going now?"

The Doctor smiled, squeezing Tyra's hand in silent support "Into the volcano."

"No way," Donna breathed.

* * *

The Doctor caught Tyra when her legs gave out on her after a particularly rocky path "You good?"

"Yeah," she whispered "It hurts."

"I know," he murmured, pressing a kiss to her forehead "We'll get you back to the Tardis as soon as we figured this out, alright?"

Tyra leaned against him tiredly "Kay."

Donna panted a little as she caught up to them. She had stopped for a moment to look at the view a little while up "Hey, but if it's aliens setting off the volcano, doesn't that make it alright for you to stop it?"

"Still part of history," the Doctor shook his head and continued walking, supporting Tyra as they went.

Donna grumbled "But I'm history to you. You saved me in 2008. You saved us all. Why is that different?"

"Some things are fixed, something things are in flux," the Doctor explained "Pompeii is fixed."

"How do you know which is which?" Donna asked, crossing her arms.

The Doctor whirled around "Because that's how I see the universe. Every waking second, I can see what is, what was, what could be, what must not. That's the burden of a Time Lord, Donna. And I'm the only one left."

Donna stared at him for a moment before her eyes hardened again. She didn't like this and she was making sure they knew exactly how she felt about all this "How many people died?"

"Stop it," the Doctor snapped, moving further into the volcano.

"Doctor, how many people died?"

The Doctor clenched his teeth "Twenty thousand."

"Is that what you can see, Doctor?" Donna asked, her voice a little rough "All twenty thousand? And you think that's alright, do you?"

Something roared close to where they were. The Doctor pressed himself against the wall and peered around a corner "They know we're here. Come on."

It didn't take long until the noises brought them to a large open space where quite a few Pyroviles were walking around.

"It's the heart of Vesuvius," the Doctor whispered "We're right inside the mountain."

Donna looked over his shoulder "There's tons of them."

The Doctor squinted at something on the other end of the open space "What's that thing?" He pulled out a monocular to look at the construct.

"Oh, you better hurry up and think of something," Donna hissed "Rocky fall's on its way."

"That's how they arrived," the Doctor pointed out "Or what's left of it. Escape pod? Prison ship? Gene bank?"

Donna tilted her head "But why do they need a volcano? Maybe it erupts and they launch themselves back into space or something?"

The Doctor pulled a face "Oh, it's worse than that."

"When isn't it?" Tyra mumbled to herself and was about to pull the Doctor down when Lucius spotted them.

"Heathens defile us," he cried out, pointing at them "They would desecrate your temple, my lord gods."

The Doctor grabbed Tyra's hand and jerked his head "Come on."

"We can't go in," Donna told him worriedly.

"Well, we can't go back either," the Doctor pointed out.

Lucius' eyes trailed them until they vanished behind some rocks "Crush them. Burn them."

"Donna, help Tyra down, alright?" the Doctor whispered urgently "I'll take care of the Pyrovile."

Tyra flinched away when Donna went to reach out for her, trying to make her own way through the rocky terrain "Let me help," Donna urged, reaching out again.

"I'm fine," Tyra shook her head and shrugged off Donna's hands as she stumbled after the Doctor.

A Pyrovile reared up in front of them but the Doctor quickly extinguished it with the water pistol "Hurry," he called over his shoulder as they ran over to the escape pod.

"There's nowhere to run, Doctor, daughter of Mikael, daughter of London," Lucius cried out.

The Doctor stopped just in time to catch Tyra again when she tripped. He would never get used to her recent bouts of clumsiness "Now then, Lucius," he spoke up "My lords Pyrovillian, don't get yourselves in a lather." He looked down at Tyra who was still breathing heavily "In a lava? No? no. But if I might beg the wisdom of the gods before we perish… Once this new race of creatures is complete, then what?"

"My masters will follow the example of Rome itself," Lucius proclaimed "An almighty empire, bestriding the whole of civilisation."

Donna frowned "But if you've crashed and you've got all this technology… Why don't you just go home?"

Lucius shook his head "The Heaven of Pyrovillia is gone."

"What do you mean, gone? Where's it gone?" the Doctor frowned. How could a whole planet be gone?

"It was taken. Pyrovillia is lost. But there's heat enough in this world for a new species to rise."

The Doctor made a face "Yeah, I should warn you, it's seventy percent water out there."

Lucius scoffed "Water can boil. And everything will burn, Doctor."

"Then the whole planet is at stake," the Doctor nodded "Thank you. That's all I needed to know. Donna." He wrapped his arm around Tyra's waist, half carrying her into the escape pod with Donna following them.

Donna turned to the Doctor as soon as the door was closed "Could we be anymore trapped?" The Doctor eased Tyra down to the ground, wiping at his forehead when the escape pod got hotter. Donna fanned her face with a hand "Little bit hot."

The Doctor studied the circuits "See? The energy converter takes the lava, uses the power to create a fusion matrix which welds Pyrovile to Human. Now it's complete, they can convert millions."

Tyra blinked against the heaviness of her body "What's that mean?"

"That's why the soothsayers can't see the volcano. There is no volcano. Vesuvius was never going to erupt. The Pyrovile are stealing all its power. They're going to use it to take over the world," the Doctor explained.

Tyra tried but failed to get up, leaning her head against the hot stone behind her "Wait, but for there to be lava, it has to be a volcano, right? The only thing they're doing is stopping it from erupting?"

"If you're being technical," the Doctor agreed.

"But you can change it back?" Donna asked, looking up at the Doctor.

The Doctor nodded "I can invert the system, set off the volcano and blow them up, yes. But that's the choice, Donna. It's Pompeii or the world."

Donna's eyes widened even more "Oh, my God."

"If Pompeii is destroyed then it's not just history, it's me. I make it happen," the Doctor whispered.

"It's a fixed point though," Tyra breathed, her words slurring together as the heat started getting to her more and more "You can't stop it. The only thing you can do is make it happen, Doctor."

He swallowed and looked at the lever "Push this lever and it's over. Twenty thousand people." He placed his hand on it, smiling lightly when Donna placed her hand over his. They looked at each other and pushed.

Tyra grimaced when the stone shook as it hurled through the air, following the lava's path out of the volcano. She let out a small whimper when the pod landed roughly, slamming the three inside to the ground harshly.

Donna and the Doctor went to get out, while Tyra was staying where she was. Her body felt like it was on fire, hurting worse than it had on the Titanic when she had overdone it "It was an escape pod," the Doctor nodded before turning to look back into the pod "Ty. Are you alright?"

Tyra shook her head lightly "Hurts," she whimpered.

"Okay, I'm going to pick you up, alright?" the Doctor asked, carefully sliding his arms under her. He knew where her worst wounds were, so he made sure not to put any pressure on them if he could avoid it "I'm sorry. This is going to hurt." He started running, making his way away from the avalanche of ash that was rolling towards the mountain with Donna rushing after him.

Inside the town, Donna stopped, looking at all of the people rushing around "Don't," she cried out "Don't go to the beach. Don't go to the beach, go to the hills. Listen to me. Don't go to the beach, it's not safe. Listen to me." Her head snapped to the side when she heard a little boy crying "Come here."

"Give him to me," a woman said, picking the child up before running after all the people.

The Doctor walked over to her, his grip on Tyra loosening as she rested her head on his shoulder "Come on," he murmured, leading the way through the streets to Caecilius' house.

* * *

Caecilius and his family were cowering in a corner when the three travellers rushed into the villa "Gods save us, Doctor," the man stuttered.

Loki wound his way out of Evelina's hands, limping over to the Doctor '_What happened?_'

'_Not now,_' the Doctor dismissed, looking at the family for a moment before he made his way to the Tardis.

"No," Donna cried out "Doctor, you can't."

Tyra looked at the family over the Doctor's shoulder "Save them," she whispered to him "There are eyewitness reports. Save them… They deserve it."

He shook his head "I can't. I…"

"Doctor," Tyra spoke up "This isn't Gallifrey. You can't go back to save your people but you can save someone here. There is no saying that they didn't survive. Vesuvius erupted, a lot of people are still dying but what's the harm in saving one family?"

Donna stopped next to them "Please. Just save someone," she pleaded "Not the whole town. Just save someone."

The Doctor's shoulders slumped as he turned around, setting Tyra to her feet gently "Go on."

"Come with me," Tyra smiled shyly, kneeling down in front of Caecilius. She grabbed his arm and pulled him up, the rest of his family following "We have to go now."

* * *

The group was silent as they watch Pompeii being swallowed by a cloud of volcanic ash "It's never forgotten, Caecilius," the Doctor told the man "Oh, time will pass, men will move on and stories will fade. But one day, Pompeii will be found again. In thousands of years. And everyone will remember you."

Tyra was leaning against the Tardis, watching the family with sorrow in her eyes. She knew all too well how it was to lose a home. Both she and the Doctor knew how hard it was to move on but she had faith. They were good people. She looked up when Quintus stepped closer to her "The Doctor is right, you know? Pompeii will never be forgotten completely."

"How do you know?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder at the city that had been his home.

"Trust me," Tyra urged.

Quintus nodded, looking a little reluctant to drop the subject "Will you be alright? The three of you?"

"Hm," Tyra nodded, although she was unsure if she would ever be completely alright "I should think so."

Donna, on the other hand, looked at Evelina "What about you, Evelina? Can you see anything?"

"The visions have gone," the girl shook her head.

The Doctor hummed "The explosion was so powerful it cracked open a rift in time, just for a second. That's what gave you the gift of prophecy. It echoed back into the Pyrovillian alternative. But not anymore. You're free."

"But tell me," Metella spoke up, wiping the tears from her face "Who are you, Doctor? With your words and your temple containing such size within?"

The Doctor smiled mysteriously "Oh, I was never here. Don't tell anyone."

Caecilius' eyes wandered back to the city "The great god Vulcan must be enraged. It's so volcanic… It's like some sort of volcano." A tear fell from his eye "All those people." The Doctor slipped his arm around Tyra's shoulders as the three of them slipped back into the Tardis quietly, leaving the family to grieve.

Donna grabbed the Doctor's arm when he went to move past her after putting the Tardis into the Vortex "Thank you."

"Yeah," the Doctor smiled at her "You were right, you know. Sometimes I need someone. Especially with…" His eyes trailed to Tyra who was checking Loki for wounds.

Donna followed his gaze, her eyes betraying her guilt "Yeah."

"Look, I want to have you here. We both do," the Doctor started "But I won't have you shouting or snapping at Tyra. I understand that the situation made you feel like you had to but… If it happens again, I'm going to take you home. No exceptions."

"I understand," Donna whispered.

The Doctor squeezed her shoulder "Good. Go and get some sleep. I think we all need it right now."


	35. Blink: Donna Version

Tyra hurried after the Doctor, trying not to stumble over her own feet. They had talked about dropping her off at Jack for a while and if she was being honest with herself, she would love that. While she loved being with the Doctor and all the things she was seeing, she was exhausted and didn't feel like actually leaving the Tardis most days. Especially now that Loki's collar had broken. She wasn't even sure what had happened but for some reason the perception filter wasn't working anymore, meaning she had to leave Loki in the Tardis much to his dismay.

"Doctor," a voice called from behind them, causing Tyra to freeze "Doctor. Doctor."

The Doctor stopped and turned around to walk back to where Tyra was standing "Hello. Sorry, bit of a rush. There's a sort of thing happening. Fairly important we stop it."

The woman in front of him stared at him and then at Tyra with wide eyes. She had to hold back the laughter as the man's pink hair seemed even more ridiculous up close. He must really like Tyra if he allowed her to dye his hair that colour simply because he lost a bet "My God, it's you. It really is you. Oh, you don't remember me, do you?"

"Oi," Donna shouted from a bit up the street, waving around the piece of paper she was holding "We haven't got time for a chat, Doctor."

"Ah, look, sorry," the Doctor winced and grabbed Tyra's hand "I've got a bit of a complex life. Things don't always happen to me in quite the right order. Gets a bit confusing at times, especially at weddings." He scratched the back of his head uncomfortably "I'm rubbish at weddings, especially my own."

The woman kept her head turned to the Doctor but her eyes weren't leaving. She itched to ask how the girl got the scar even since she had first seen the video of the Doctor but from what she had seen – or rather heard on the video, she refrained "Oh, my God, of course," she breathed "You're a time traveller. It hasn't happened to you yet. None of it. It's still in your future."

Tyra shifted next to the Doctor, noticing that the woman hadn't looked away from her face despite her talking to the Doctor. That was the reason why she wanted to cover it up so badly. The Doctor wouldn't let her leave the Tardis whenever she covered the scars though. It was sweet of him but she disliked that he didn't let her cope with this in the only way she knew. With Loki, she was more or less alright. Well, as alright as she could be but without him, she'd rather have the security of no one seeing her scars. She hated the judgement in peoples' eyes.

"What hasn't happened?" the Doctor asked, tilting his head in confusion.

"Doctor, wasn't it you who said that we had to hurry?" Donna called from her place. She was starting to get annoyed at his lack of movement. Tyra shook off the Doctor's hand and moved back towards where Donna was waiting. As soon as she was close enough, Donna raised her eyebrow "What's going on?" Tyra just shrugged and turned back to watch the Doctor talking to the woman "Doctor."

"Coming," he called back, exchanging a couple more words with the woman before dashing to meet Tyra and Donna to take care of their problem.

* * *

"I thought you were saying Cardiff," Donna blinked, looking up at the creepy looking house "That's what you said… A week ago."

The Doctor rubbed the back of his neck, glancing back into the Tardis before shaking his head "I know, I know… But it seems like the Tardis has other ideas."

"It's an old house," Donna pointed out with a snort "Abandoned from the looks of it. Can we just go?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes and cringed when he caught sight of his hair in a puddle. What he wasn't doing for Tyra… The only reason he allowed her to dye his hair for that bet they made back during the Blitz was to see her laugh. While it hadn't quite worked out the way he had planned it, at least he saw the amusement in her eyes whenever she looked at him. It was worth the pain of ignoring the weird looks he was getting from people "There have been people going missing here, Donna," he explained, thinking about the folder he had in his pocket… The same folder that Sally Sparrow had handed him earlier in the week "Ty, are you sure you want to come? With Loki…"

"I – I don't know," Tyra mumbled before reaching out to grab his sleeve "I…"

The Doctor's look softened as he pulled Tyra into an embrace, pressing a kiss to her forehead "I've got you. Even if you wait for us… We'll be back soon."

Tyra shook her head "I have a bad feeling. I don't want to be alone."

"Okay," he nodded "That's fine."

Donna shook her head at the two of them but smiled lightly. The smile slid off her face when the two of them started walking towards the house "Really? How can you be so sure that something's going on here?"

"I told you," the Doctor sighed and turned around "People have been going missing from here. Over twenty people in the last couple of years."

Donna grimaced "But here? Really? I thought you promised me an alien planet."

"And we'll go to an alien planet afterwards after I drop Tyra off in Cardiff," the Doctor told her, sounding slightly impatient. His grip on Tyra's hand tightened as he caught sight of one of the statues he had seen on the pictures. Weeping Angels… Of course, it would be them. Kidnapping people, sending them in the past to die. Well, he wasn't looking forward to being stuck in 1969 but if it had already happened… Who was he to argue with history?

Tyra's head shot up when a cat yowled not too far from where they were standing "What was that?"

"Just a cat," Donna replied, looking around the run-down house. It was a mess with almost every piece of furniture either broken or so old that it looked ready to fall apart "Are you sure the stairs are safe?"

"Do you have to complain about everything?" the Doctor questioned, raising an amused eyebrow at Donna.

She snorted "Oh, I haven't even started, spaceman."

"I dread to think," he snorted, making his way up the stairs in the room he remembered from one of the other photographs. He knew that behind the wallpaper of that wall was the message he had… was going to leave for Sally.

* * *

"Urgh." The Doctor rubbed at his eyes. His head snapped up when he heard retching behind him and turned to see Tyra vomiting with Donna sitting close to her, looking dazed "Donna, are you alright?"

Donna let out a groan "What do you think, spaceman?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes, rubbing Tyra's back as she tried to take deep breaths "You good?" he asked quietly, pushing her hair out of her face.

"What was that?" Donna asked.

"Time travel without a capsule," he explained, wincing when a flash of pain shot through his head. It could have been worse… Actually, it would have been worse if they hadn't used Jack's Vortex manipulator recently. If he had this bad of a headache, he couldn't even imagine how Donna felt "Those statues in the house were Weeping Angels. They send their victims back in time and feed on the potential energy of the years you would have lived." He frowned "What's weird is that they sent us back… I don't have a set time and neither does Tyra… And since you're travelling with me, they probably wouldn't get much off you either. This doesn't make sense…"

Donna's eyes widened "Doctor, if we're – Wherever we are… What about the Tardis?"

"Yeah," the Doctor mumbled "We're stuck here. Sorry about that."

"Oh, you're sorry?" Donna asked, crossing her arms in annoyance "Well, that makes it better. What are we supposed to do now? Where even are we?"

The Doctor looked around "Right about 1969," he said, pulling the purple folder from his pocket. He opened it and skimmed through it "Yup. That would be 1969."

"What is that?" Tyra asked, her stomach having finally settled enough for her to move again.

"Hm?" the Doctor looked up and blinked "Oh, this? Remember that girl who stopped us when we were trying to stop that thingy from happening?" He nodded "She gave me this. Apparently, we're going to need it now."

Donna frowned "But what is that?"

"It has everything we need to know," the Doctor explained "Well, almost. It's a documentation of everything that happened on her side of things."

"Okay?" Donna mumbled before she looked up "Wait, what are we going to do now? We don't have money and no Tardis…"

The Doctor looked at Tyra questioningly "Can you get access to your accounts or…?"

"Yeah," she nodded "I should be able to. Why?"

"Well, we're gonna find a flat."

Tyra tilted her head "Why not just go to mine? I have a few properties around London alone."

The Doctor stopped "You do?"

"Yes?" She shook her head at him "I thought I told you that before. You know that I spent a lot of time in London and some of the Coven live there."

"Huh," the Doctor rubbed the back of his head "I can't remember. Oh well… Any chance of housing a couple of stranded time travellers until they get their transport back?"

Tyra's lips twitched lightly "I think that can be arranged."

* * *

"Ty, can we talk?" Donna asked, standing in the doorway of Tyra's room uncomfortably. She had no idea where the hell the Doctor disappeared to but knowing him, he was getting into trouble again.

Tyra looked up, shifting a little. Today was one of her bad days and she really didn't want to talk to anyone. Actually, most days since they were deposited in the past had been bad days for her. She was pretty sure that she was the reason the Doctor had left earlier as well "What is it?" she asked quietly, clenching her hand in the fabric of her sweatpants.

"I wanted to say how sorry I was," Donna whispered, looking at her feet "I should have apologised earlier but… I was ashamed."

"What? Why?"

Donna shrugged "I shouldn't have treated you the way I did back in Pompeii."

Tyra let out a sigh and got off the bed "Donna, I can't say that it didn't hurt but… I understand." She reached out to place her hands on Donna's shoulders before withdrawing again "You haven't travelled with us enough to know that sometimes you can't save people."

"I get that your life isn't as glamorous as I thought but… I don't know. I can't accept that the Doctor would just stand by and do nothing," Donna gestured, her eyes watering when Tyra didn't even touch her. It wasn't her fault, Donna knew that but it still hurt to think that she was the reason why Tyra didn't feel comfortable with it. She had treated her like crap even if she had promised the Doctor she wouldn't.

Tyra backed away from Donna, slightly wary that she would start shouting again "That's the thing," she pointed out, her voice barely a whisper "He learned the hard way when he can interfere and when he can't."

"No," Donna shook her head "It's not that easy. Why are you always backing him? Stand up for yourself. You didn't have a problem with that last time." Just as soon as the words left Donna's mouth, she knew that she messed it up again. She cursed internally, clenching her jaw shut. To make this work, she would have to curb her temper. It wasn't Tyra she was angry with and while she didn't understand what had happened, she knew that it was bad.

"Because I know him," Tyra spoke up, her expression falling. She turned away from the doorway and crawled back into bed "I'm tired. Do you mind?"

"Yeah," Donna mumbled, backing away from the door. She closed the door and sank down on the sofa in the living room behind her, burying her face in her hands.

* * *

"You need blood," the Doctor noted, catching a shimmer of black veins underneath Tyra's eyes.

Tyra shook her head, curling up on the bed. She missed Loki… These past few weeks without him had been harder than she could have ever imagined. Hell, over the past week and a half she hadn't left the bed more than to go to the toilet. She was exhausted but she felt like she could move – she didn't want to move "No. I don't want anything."

"Ty, no matter how little you want it," the Doctor sighed, sitting down next to her. His hand touched her back gently, rubbing at the material of the shirt – Was that his shirt? "You haven't had blood since we got stranded here. This is hurting you and I don't like seeing you hurt." He pulled her into a sitting position, holding out his arm "Here."

Tyra froze, staring down at his arm "No, I… I'm not… I don't want…"

"Please?" he murmured "I want you to. I want to help, Ty."

"What if I hurt you?" Tyra asked quietly, studying him carefully. Her stomach rolled just thinking about blood but he was right. She did need it. Her limbs already felt somewhat stiff, ready to desiccate her enough so that moving would be hard. It would take a long time for her to desiccate completely but it would be painful… It already was. Mik… He had done amazing work in destroying her even after he was gone.

The Doctor smiled at her "I am sure. If I wasn't, I wouldn't have offered it."

Tyra hesitated, reaching out for his wrist. She really didn't want to do this but she knew that the Doctor wouldn't let this go. After the Year, she had gotten sick more and more often whenever she actually managed to swallow blood. More often than not, she vomited it back up. It was another reason why she disliked feeding now. She gingerly cradled his hand in hers and stared into his eyes "Are you sure?"

The Doctor smiled "I'm sure that I'm sure."

"Okay," Tyra whispered and carefully bit down. As soon as the first drops of the alien's blood hit her tongue, she sucked at the wound greedily. It tasted so good. Almost like liquid sugar... She didn't know how long she had been drinking before a voice started up in her head. Tyra ripped her face away from the Doctor's arm and scrambled back in horror, the blood churning in her stomach as she fought back the urge to throw it back up "I'm sorry," she stuttered "I... I didn't mean to take so much."

The Doctor shot her a reassuring smile and pulled her into his arms "It's alright, Ty. I'm fine. You didn't take too much at all."

"I'm going to be sick," she breathed, closing her eyes tightly.

"You need to breathe," the Doctor whispered into her ear "In through your nose and out through your mouth." When she did as he told her, he smiled "Good. Now, again. Just keep breathing like that."

Once the nausea had ebbed away enough for her not to vomit the moment she opened her mouth, she slumped against the Doctor "I'm sorry."

"Hey. This isn't your fault," he told her "I know that the situation isn't ideal either. We just have to try and get back and then we'll get you to Jack and I can get rid of the hair dye."

Tyra let out a small snort "You really hate it, don't you?"

The Doctor groaned "The looks I keep getting."

"You were getting those looks before," she pointed out "You just never noticed. It's not the hair, Doctor. Same with the suit. This is all you. But that's why I love you."

The Doctor looked down at her with a huge smile on his face "I love you too." He leaned down and pressed their lips together before easing them down on the mattress, pulling Tyra closer to him. He loved the feeling of her in his arms. It was something he could never get enough of and the fact that despite having bad days, she allowed him to touch her meant a lot.

It had been really bad for a couple of days but he couldn't fault her. After Pompeii, he had expected a pretty significant low but he hadn't thought they wouldn't have the Tardis or Loki to help her through it. He knew that Donna wasn't helping either but she was trying. Ever since he had found her near tears in the living room, she had been trying to not shout as much when Tyra was around.

The Doctor pressed another kiss to Tyra's forehead before he closed his eyes for some much-needed sleep. He hadn't had much time for rest, always running around, trying to find things for his timey-wimey detector.

* * *

"Ooh," the Doctor cried happily as he followed the dinging of his timey-wimey detector "Look, it works."

Donna snorted "Congrats? I still have no idea what it does…"

"But I explained it to you," the Doctor gestured "I told you that it's a timey-wimey detector. It goes ding where there's stuff." Tyra shook her head in exasperation. She was feeling a little better after she had managed to keep down the blood but she still refused to drink more.

The dings got closer together and the group of three stopped to see a man slumped against the wall of a building. He was blinking lethargically, huddling closer to the walls and into the shadows.

"Welcome," the Doctor called out as he hurried over.

The man looked up with a frown and blinked at the Doctor. His eyes trailed up to his hair and he had to hold back the comment. The pink really didn't suit the man "Where am I?"

"1969," the Doctor replied. There was no use in lying. If he did, he would have to come clean sometime. It wasn't as if Billy could go back to his time after all "Not bad, as it goes. You've got the moon landing to look forward to."

Donna shot the Doctor a look "You're not helping. Can't we just take him back when we get our transport?"

"No," he shook his head "It doesn't work that way… Sorry."

"How did I get here?" the man asked, his eyes wide as he took in what these people were telling him.

The Doctor rubbed his neck "The same way we did. The touch of an angel. Same one, probably, since you ended up in the same year." When the man went to get up, he shook his head rapidly "No; no. No, no, no, don't get up. Time travel without a capsule. Nasty. Catch your breath. Don't go swimming for half an hour."

"I don't," the man stuttered "I can't."

"Fascinating race the Weeping Angels. The only psychopaths in the universe to kill you nicely. No mess, no fuss, they just zap you into the past and let you live to death. The rest of your life used up and blown away in the blink of an eye. You die in the past and in the present, they consume the energy of all the days you might have had, all your stolen moments. They're creatures of the abstract. They live off potential energy," the Doctor rambled.

Tyra tugged at his pink hair "You're making it worse," she pointed out quietly.

"What in the world are you talking about?" the man exclaimed.

"Just nod when he stops for breath," Donna laughed and crouched down in front of him "What's your name?"

The man looked at her before he bit his lip "Billy. Billy Shipton."

"Nice to meet you," Donna smiled "I'm Donna. The one with the pink hair is the Doctor and the girl is Tyra."

"How did you know where I was?" Billy asked in confusion "I can't believe I'm actually giving this a thought this but – if I really am in another time… How did you know where I was?"

The Doctor held up the contraption he had built over the past weeks "Tracked you down with this," he explained "This is my timey-wimey detector. It goes ding when there's stuff…" He ignored the two girls and grimaced "Also, it can boil an egg at thirty paces… whether you want it or not, actually. I learnt to stay away from hens. It's not pretty when they blow."

Billy stared at the Doctor, utterly bewildered and somewhat concerned "I don't understand… How can this be possible?"

"The statues, like he said," Donna pointed out.

"Normally, I'd offer you a lift home but I can't in this case. Not only is my Tardis gone but… I also need you to get a message to Sally Sparrow and I'm sorry, Billy, I am very – very sorry. It's going to take a while," the Doctor told him, an apologetic expression on his face.

Billy tilted his head "What are you on about? How do you know about Sally?"

The Doctor winced "It's a long story," he said "Why don't you come with us and we'll explain everything?" He held out his hand and helped Billy up as they made their way back to Tyra's flat.

* * *

Billy was looking through the file, his expression full of wonder. This was incredible… Nothing of this had happened for him yet – well, almost nothing. He had met Sally and had gotten send back but other than that, nothing from the file had actually happened yet "This is…" He ignored the cup of coffee that Donna had set in front of him, looking up at the three people in wonder and slight fear "Okay, I get that this is 1969, I have had enough proof of that. The fact that it was a moving statue is a bit… hard to believe but since that apparently happened, I can also believe that you're time travellers." He stopped and ran a hand over his head "And you want me to live my life here so that I can tell Sally Sparrow to look at her DVDs?"

"Basically," the Doctor confirmed.

Tyra got up and went to rummage in one of the cabinets where she had hidden the alcohol. It was hard enough to drink when members of her Coven around, she didn't need them to find any of the bottles because she knew they'd get rid of it "Here," she mumbled, putting the bottle of whiskey and a glass in front of the man "I think you're going to need this."

"Thanks," Billy nodded and poured a large amount of alcohol into the glass "So these are all Sally's DVDs and she gave you that list?"

"Yes," the Doctor nodded "You have to understand that you can't tell her about this though."

Billy hummed and looked through the file "There's something missing, isn't there?"

The Doctor's head dropped "Yeah. I took out a couple of things because I didn't want you to know but… I think it's better if you did already know. That number in your pocket… Keep it, don't lose it because you're going to need it in the future. I've got an account of what happened and you're going to die. After meeting you, Sally gets a call and she goes to the hospital to meet you."

"I always thought it would be kind of cool to know how you're going to die…" Billy breathed "But this – This is…"

Donna placed her hand on his arm and nudged the bottle closer to him "I know that it's a lot but… How about you stay with us?" She looked up at Tyra "He could stay in the guest bedroom."

"I don't really care," Tyra shrugged and looked at Billy "The guest bedroom is through there to the right. There's also clothes that should fit you…"

"Thank you," Billy smiled weakly before gesturing to the whiskey "Do you mind if I…?"

Tyra's lips twitched "Knock yourself out. Nothing I can't get more of."

* * *

"Are you ready?" Billy asked, checking over his equipment for the last time. It looked good and was the highest quality they could get in 1969… How they had paid for it, he didn't know but he didn't really want to ask either.

The Doctor nodded. He had read through the entire transcript at least four times and roughly knew what he had to say. Tyra was leaning against his shoulder, blinking at the camera lazily "Come on, up you get," he whispered, pressing a kiss to her temple. Tyra let out a low whine but moved to stand behind the camera with Donna and Billy.

'_The Doctor – Who's the Doctor – He's the Doctor,_' the words appeared on the teleprompter, startling him a little. He hadn't even noticed that Billy had started filming.

He sniffed and put on his glasses "Yep. That's me," he nodded.

'_Okay, that was scary – No, it sounds like he's replying but he always says that._'

"Yes, I do."

'_And that._'

The Doctor smirked in amusement "Yep, and this."

'_He can hear us – No, he can't. I've got a transcript, everything he says. "Yep, that's me.", "Yes, I do.", "Yep, and this."_'

"Are you going to read out the whole thing?" the Doctor exclaimed in annoyance. He could see it, actually. Someone reading out the entire script just to prove his point…

'_Who are you? – Yeah, and what's up with the hair._'

The Doctor grimaced and ran a hand through his hair, causing Tyra to giggle at the action "You made the bet," she reminded him.

"I know but… Really? You had to go for pink hair?"

She shrugged "I could have made you wear the technicolour outfit but that would just be cruel."

The Doctor groaned "Remind me to not get on your bad side," he huffed and shook his head before turning back to the camera with a sheepish grin "Sorry… Erm, I'm a time traveller… Well, I was. I'm stuck in 1969."

"You?" Donna scoffed "I think you meant 'We're stuck.'"

He waved his hand dismissively "Yeah, that."

'_I've seen this bit before._"

"Quite possible," the Doctor mused.

'_1969, that's where you're talking from?_'

He grinned "Afraid so."

'_But you're replying to me. You can't know exactly what I'm going to say forty years before I say it._'

"Thirty-eight," he exclaimed. If she was trying to go down that route, she should at least try and get the number right… Right?

'_How is this possible?_'

The Doctor ruffled his hair in agitation "People don't understand time…"

"Oh, here we go," Tyra groaned, startling a laugh out of Billy. He had gotten to know the Doctor and the two girls over the past three weeks and had quickly realised the man's penchant for technobabble that no one could follow.

"… It's not what you think it is," the Doctor continued.

'_Then what is it?_'

"Complicated," he replied.

'_Tell me._'

He sighed "Very complicated."

'_I'm clever. I'm listening. Don't patronise me. People have died. I'm not happy. Tell me._'

"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect," he started, gesturing around wildly as he tried to make his point "But actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint, it's more like a big ball of wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey… stuff."

"Oh, this is even better than what I thought he would say," Donna laughed, holding herself up against a wall.

The Doctor shot her a look "Be quiet, you."

"Or what, spaceman? You're going to throw a big ball of wibbly-wobbly at me?" she shot back.

He just rolled his eyes and turned back to the teleprompter where the next line had appeared '_I've seen this before. You said that sentence got away from you._'

"It got away from me, yeah…" he trailed off.

'_Next you say "Well, I can hear you."_'

"Well, I can hear you," he parroted.

'_Impossible._'

He tilted his head "Not hear you exactly but I know everything you're going to say."

'_How?_'

"Look to your left," he told her "I have a copy of the finished transcript. It's on my autocue."

'_How? It's still being written._'

"I told you," the Doctor sighed "I'm a time traveller. I got it in the future."

He could practically hear the raised eyebrows in his last statement '_So, you're reading from a transcript of a conversation you're still having?_'

"Wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey," he waved off "What matters is we can communicate. We have got big problems now. They've taken the blue box, haven't they? The angels have the phone box."

'_Angels? You mean those statue things?_'

The Doctor nodded "Creatures from another world."

'_But they're just statues._'

"Only when you see them," he corrected.

'_What does that mean?_'

"Lonely assassins, they're called," he told her "No one knows where they came from. They're as old as the universe or very nearly so. They've survived this long as they have the most perfect defence system ever evolved. They're quantum locked. They don't exist when being observed. The moment they're seen by any other living creature they freeze into rock. No choice. It's a fact of their biology. In the sight of any living thing, they literally turn to stone. And you can't kill stone. Course, a stone can't kill you either. But then you turn your head away, then you blink, and oh, yes it can. That's why they cover their eyes. They're not weeping, they can't risk looking at each other. Their greatest asset is their greatest curse. They can never be seen. The loneliest creatures in the universe. And I'm sorry, I am very – very sorry, it's up to you now."

'_What am I supposed to do?_'

"The blue box, it's my time machine," he explained patiently, trying to convey the seriousness of the conversation as quickly as he could "There is a world of time energy in there they could feast on forever. The damage they can do can switch off the sun. You have got to send it back to me."

'_How?_ – **End**'

The Doctor straightened up in alarm "And that's it, I'm afraid." He took off his glasses "There's no more from you on the transcript, that's all I've got. I don't know what stopped you from talking but I can guess. They're coming. The angels are coming for you. But listen, your life could depend on this." He leaned closer to the camera, trying to get the point across "Don't blink. Don't even blink. Blink and you're dead. They're fast, faster than you can believe. Don't turn your back, don't look away and don't blink. Good luck."

The light on the camera blinked off as Billy closed it up "Okay, that's it. So, now what?"

"Now," the Doctor groaned, stretching as he stood up "You live your life. Have a good one and enjoy. You should stick to the film business. You're good at it." He bit his lip "I'm sorry. I really wish I could take you back but…"

Billy cut him off, understanding where the man came from. It had taken a while but he didn't have anything in his life that he would miss "You need me to talk to Sally. I know that."

"Just a few rules," the Doctor told him "No contacting anyone who may know you. Not ever. No one can know what happened to you, I'm sorry." He placed his hand on the man's shoulder and squeezed before holding out a piece of paper "And you'll need this. This is the encryption for the Easter Egg and a list of all the DVDs to put it on. Put the encryption of the DVDs and it will send my ship back to us."

Billy nodded again "Thank you, Doctor. Good luck."

"Have a good life, Billy Shipton." They shook hands before Donna leaned over and pulled the man into a hug. The Doctor held out his arm for Tyra and jerked his head towards the door "Come one, you two. We have a house to graffiti."

Before they were gone, Tyra stopped short "Oh, Billy. Here." She threw a key at him "You're welcome to stay as long as you need."

"But… How? Why?" he blinked at the small object in his hand.

"The flat has been in my family for a long time. No one has been staying there but people come and go occasionally," she explained "If you show them this." She handed over a small envelope "They will help you in any way they can for as long as you need it."

Billy raised an eyebrow "Do you take in strays often?"

The Doctor coughed "You have no idea."

"Hush," Tyra grumbled before inclining her head at Billy "I also put a note on the fridge. It has a couple of numbers of people who can help you find a job. Just… If you need any help, just tell them that Tyra sent you and you'll be fine."

"Thank you," Billy breathed gratefully. He hadn't expected them to help him this much. Especially, since Tyra seemed a bit… aloof sometimes. Donna had walked on eggshells around the younger girl and he couldn't help but wonder why. Of course, he hadn't asked but it was none of his business either. He was just happy that he would have a place to stay and contacts if he ever needed help. How Tyra knew anyone in 1969 well enough that they would help… He wondered… Maybe he would find out. It was a mystery and he had never been able to resist a good mystery.

**Omake**

Klaus was standing in front of the apartment building, looking down at the slip where he had written down the address again, double-checking whether he had the right one. He had been relieved when one of his witches contacted him about his youngest sister. Waiting and watching had become harder and harder but he partially understood her. None of them – apart from Kol – had done right by Tyra in so long. They left her alone more often than not and so he shouldn't have been surprised that she didn't believe him when he talked about family.

"Who are you?" Billy asked, opening the door to see a strange man standing there.

Klaus narrowed his eyes, mustering the man "I'm looking for Tyra."

Billy blinked. He still didn't understand how Tyra had as many contacts in 1969 as she did… "Who are you?"

"Can you just tell her that I want to see her?" Klaus asked, getting annoyed.

"Can't do that, I'm afraid," Billy shrugged, unsure of what to tell him "Tyra left about a week ago."

Klaus closed his eyes for a moment, letting his shoulders slump "Great," he sighed "Do you know where she went?"

Billy shook his head "Sorry, no idea. Why are you looking for her anyway?"

"She's my little sister," Klaus explained. He didn't know why he was being nice to this man but he honestly was exhausted. The fact that he had just missed Tyra again didn't help either.

"How?" Billy exclaimed, his mouth opening and closing "I don't… What?"

Klaus tilted his head "What do you know?"

"Nothing," Billy gestured "I met her and the Doctor because they were stuck here for a while… That's all. She didn't really talk to me all that much."

"Well, then," Klaus nodded and went to turn around "I'll just go back to looking then…"

Billy watched him walk away for a moment "Wait. Why are you looking for her anyway?"

"For reasons," Klaus shot back "Just… Can you just tell me how she was?"

"Not very well," Billy sighed and ran a hand over his bald head "She – Something happened. I don't know what but something or someone hurt her."

Klaus' eyes narrowed in anger "Thank you."

"What are you going to do now?"

Klaus shrugged "Try to find my sister and find the person who hurt her and kill them slowly and painfully."

Billy swallowed and took a small step away "Good luck?"

"Hm," Klaus hummed, stalking out of the building without another word.


	36. Meat

Jack was standing by the water tower, waiting for the Doctor to arrive. He had gotten the message that he would be dropping off Tyra with him because she wasn't doing too well. He couldn't deny that it worried him. Tyra hadn't been doing well when the Doctor dropped her off but that had been quite a while ago already. While he still had problems with the aftermath of the Year, he was mostly doing okay. Ianto helped him a ton by just being there…

His head snapped up when the sound of the Tardis' wheezing groan filled the air. He straightened up, watching as the blue box materialised in front of him. A smile stole its way across his face. She was amazing and a part of him would always long to travel with the Doctor but as he had told the Doctor. He had people to look after – a city to defend. Maybe someday he would join them in travelling again.

"Jack," a voice called out, startling him out of his thoughts.

He grinned before raising an eyebrow when he caught sight of the Doctor – specifically his hair "Really, Doc? New fashion statement?"

"Don't," he whined, reaching out to draw Jack into a hug "I'm just glad that time is almost up and I can go back to brown."

"Do I want to know why your hair is pink?" Jack asked.

The Doctor winced "Probably not."

Jack nodded "You're not going to tell me either, are you?"

"Not a chance," the Doctor snorted before turning serious. He really didn't want to leave Tyra or be far from her, but this was for the best. After what happened with the Titanic, Pompeii and the fact that she had been the one who wandered off while he was investigating Adipose… It was better if she had someone who could understand what she had gone through in detail… Jack was the best person for the job, especially since they both trusted him with their lives and the two were as close as they were "Look, I appreciate this, Jack. That you're going to look after Tyra for a while means..."

Jack squeezed the Doctor's shoulder "I don't mind. You know that I love that girl as if she were my sister."

"Yeah," the Doctor breathed before letting out a sigh "She's doing better but recently… There have been a lot of bad days and I don't know what to do anymore. I feel like our new Companion isn't helping either but… Please, just try and talk to her?"

"She isn't talking to you, is she?" Jack questioned, realising why the Doctor looked so crushed.

The Doctor shook his head "She's talking but… There are so many things that she isn't telling me. She barely feeds, doesn't sleep well and nothing I do is helping. At least I don't think it is. I want to help her, I really do but I think that she needs some time away from all this – from all the danger before we can really go back to travelling. I tried to tell her that I'd stay with her, but she doesn't want that either…"

Jack closed his eyes at hearing the pain in the Doctor's voice. He really wished the situation was different. Both he and Tyra deserved to be happy together but someone or something always came in between. At the moment, they were both hurting and that lead them to hurt each other without either of them wanting it "I promise you that I'll do the best I can. There are also a couple of people who want to see Tyra again. They were very happy when I let it slip that she would come."

"What?" the Doctor frowned, tilting his head in confusion.

"A Mr Copper, Foon and Morvin," Jack pointed out.

The Doctor's expression lit up "How are they doing? I gave them your number… I hope that was alright. I didn't know who else to send them to."

"It was more than alright," Jack told him "You know that I like helping and you both deserve it."

"So do you, Jack," the Doctor pointed out "Still, you have no obligation to either of us. Not after the way I treated you and…" The Doctor shook his head before smiling crookedly "Thank you."

Jack swallowed and nodded. He had been angry at the Doctor for years before letting go of it. Sure, it hurt but they had talked about it and the past year really put things into perspective. Jack had the chance at leading a normal life but after knowing the Doctor… He just couldn't and he would be damned if he ever let the man run away again "Now, where is my favourite Original hiding?"

The Doctor gestured over his shoulder "She's in the garden with Loki." A frown crossed his face "Speaking of Loki… When we visited Barcelona, one of the puppies bonded with her. I hope it's alright that he comes too? Just make sure that he stays out of sight for the most part. I'm still working on his collar. The perception filter shorted out for some reason and I haven't had the time to fix it yet."

"No nose?" Jack asked curiously.

"Nope. Wings. Along with telepathy."

Jack blinked "Huh."

"Just about," the Doctor smiled and shook his head "Look out for him. There is a reason Tyra named him after the God of Mischief."

"Huh," Jack repeated before he shook his head "Am I going to meet that new Companion of yours as well?"

The Doctor shook his head "Donna is sleeping. We managed to get stranded for a bit but I'm sure that Tyra will tell you if you ask."

"Same with the hair colour, then," Jack shrugged and turned to move towards the door of the Tardis "Is it alright if I go or do you want to get her?"

The Doctor gestured for him to go ahead "The Tardis will show you where she is."

Jack just nodded and walked into the Tardis, trailing his hand along the console on his way past "Hey, love," he whispered, grinning when the lights of the console flashed "Do you mind showing me where Ty is?"

The Tardis hummed in his mind and shifted the corridors around to make it easier for Jack to find the garden. She was worried about her Warrior. Ever since they had gotten back a couple of hours ago, she had been in the garden with Loki. The Tardis was watching over them quietly, making sure that nothing would happen to either of them.

Jack entered the corridor, seeing one lone door at the end "Thanks, old girl." He hesitated for a moment before he carefully opened the door, making sure he wouldn't startle Tyra if she wasn't paying attention.

What he saw further into the very pretty garden – he wondered how long that had been there – tugged at his heart. Tyra was curled around a small white bundle of fluff, her face buried in the dog's fur "Ty," he spoke up.

"Jack," Tyra breathed, flashing over to him with Loki still clutched to her chest "I missed you."

"I missed you too," Jack told her, drawing her into his arms carefully "You look better."

Tyra pulled back, dropping her gaze to the ground, hair falling to cover her face "I really don't… But thanks."

"Hey," Jack huffed, tilting her head up "Would I lie to you about this? Have I ever lied?"

"No," Tyra whispered "Sorry."

Jack grinned and ruffled her hair "It's fine. Are you ready to go?" Tyra's arms tightened around Loki and she nodded lightly "Well, then. Let's go." He wrapped his arm around the girl's shoulders and steered her out of the garden and back into the console room where a bag had materialised on the jump seat.

Tyra looked at it for a moment before a smile flashed across her face "You're the best," she murmured to the Tardis and went to grab the bag. She blinked when Jack reached past her, easily throwing it over his shoulder.

"The Doctor is outside," Jack pointed out when he saw Tyra's eyes roaming around the console room.

"Right," she nodded and hurried out, throwing herself at the Doctor. Tyra sniffed and whispered directly into his ear "I'm sorry."

The Doctor shook his head and tightened his arms around her "Don't be. You need this and I can't blame you… It's been a bit crazy recently and you need a stable environment until you're a bit better."

"Take care of Donna?" Tyra asked when they broke apart.

"I think it will be her taking care of me," the Doctor snorted with a grin.

Tyra shrugged "She has as bad of a gob as you do. You both need to look out for each other."

The Doctor inclined his head before he leaned down to press a long kiss to Tyra's lips "Be careful."

"You too," she whispered, leaning her head against the Doctor's shoulder for a moment.

"You lovebirds done?" Jack asked, watching them in amusement.

The Doctor shot him a small glare before his lips twitched "Yes, yes… I'll see you, Jack." He stopped directly next to him and lowered his voice, even if he knew that Tyra would be able to hear him regardless "If anything happens to her, you'll be sorry, do you understand me?"

"Sir, yes, sir," Jack saluted before he leaned forward, pressing a kiss to the Doctor's cheek "See you around, Doc."

"You're incorrigible," the Doctor sighed before walking towards the Tardis. He smiled at Tyra over his shoulder one last time before he disappeared through the doors reluctantly.

* * *

"So, what do you think?" Jack asked after they had finished the tour.

Tyra's eyes darted up to where Myfanwy had hidden herself "You never told me you have a dinosaur… Why did you never tell me about the dinosaur?"

Jack laughed, wrapping his arm around Tyra's shoulders, tugging her over to the couch "Because I wanted to surprise you. It's woefully hard to do."

"That's a bad thing?" she asked, looking up at him in confusion.

"No," Jack huffed "But it's annoying. Do you have any idea how hard it is to surprise or scare someone like you?"

Tyra shrugged, leaning her head against Jack's chest as Loki was trying and failing to climb onto the couch with them. Her lips twitched as she scooped him up, depositing on the spot next to her head "I'm guessing just about as hard as trying to show a Time Lord that the Time War wasn't his fault?"

"Sounds about right," Jack grumbled, tightening his arms "Do you want to try and sleep before the team gets here? Should be another couple of hours."

Tyra swallowed nervously, shifting to hide her face "I…"

"Hey, we can just talk if you want. Or you can try to make friends with Myfanwy?" Jack cut her off, trying to offer her choices. He knew that sleeping wasn't always the best thing and even if both of them might need it, the nightmares stopped them from even attempting it for the most part. Jack had Ianto though. Whenever his Welshman was close, he slept better and actually managed a few hours of uninterrupted sleep but Tyra? He doubted that the Doctor made a lot of time for just lying down with her. It wasn't even that the man didn't want to, but his fidgeting would stop any attempt, so he most likely stayed away. If he got the Doctor right, Tyra only really slept when she passed out and barely fed which in turn made her weaker.

"No… I… Can we just stay here?" Tyra asked hesitatingly, scrunching up her face when Loki licked her face, managing to get dog spit in her eye "Gross. Loki."

Jack snorted, scratching the puppy behind the eye "I never thought the Doc would voluntarily take along a pet… One that isn't metal."

"Honestly? Neither did I," Tyra sighed "But Loki… I feel better with him around. He doesn't look at me all sad when I don't act like I did before. He just listens when I talk and…"

"Ty… Valkyrie," Jack licked his lips, tilting her head up so she was looking at him "The situation rattled all of us. Martha, her family, you, me and the Doctor – No matter how much he likes to pretend that he's fine. The Master hurt all of us one way or the other."

Tyra sat up, looking down at Jack "I know that. But the looks… I know the Doctor loves me and I know that he wishes that he could have changed the Year but he can't. The only thing he can do is wish and it isn't helping either of us. I hate the looks he sends me when he thinks I'm not looking. I hate the panic attacks. I hate that I rely on Loki enough that I don't want to leave the Tardis without him. I hate what Mikael did to me. I hate everything that's happened but there's nothing I can do. I can't stop thinking. I can't stop any of this. I can't just be normal again, Jack. I tried but I can't."

Jack shook his head harshly, pulling her back down "No one is asking you, love. We all want to help you. We all want to get over this and if it takes time? Then it does. You're my Valkyrie and I love that you're here. You know that, right?"

"Even when the Doctor just dropped me off here?" she asked quietly.

"Even then," Jack smiled, pressing a kiss to her hair "I love you and I love the Doctor. The two of you are my family just as much as my team is. Having you here – even if the Doctor isn't – is great. You need the time away. I'm not blaming you and neither is the Doctor."

Tyra chewed on her lip, blinking to ignore her tiredness "But he's mad?"

Jack tilted his head with a frown "What gave you that idea?"

"He… I don't know. He just seemed mad when I told him that I wanted to come here," she explained.

"Tyra, the Doctor isn't mad at you for coming here," Jack told her, resting his chin on top of her head "He is mad that everything happened. With the Master and Mikael. This is in no way your fault and you didn't do anything."

Tyra looked up at him disbelievingly "If you say so," she mumbled, rubbing at her eyes as they grew heavier. She hadn't been this tired in a while. Normally, thoughts of her nightmares alone kept her up, but Jack was comfortable and the warm fur pressing into her neck was slowly lulling her to sleep.

* * *

Jack woke up to his Vortex Manipulator vibrating against his arm. Before he nodded off, he had turned off the alarm of the cog door because he knew that normally Ianto was the only person who came in this early and he wouldn't ask too many questions about the lack of alarm. Come to think of it, neither would Tosh. And they were the ones who always came in first.

Whatever Ianto had expected when he entered the Hub, it wasn't this. He froze as soon as he saw Jack laying on the couch with a girl wrapped around him.

"Ianto," Jack breathed, his eyes widening. He knew that he had nothing to feel guilty for but that didn't stop him from panicking for a minute. Ianto had bought into his playboy image more than once before he had explained about his life and he knew how his current position could be interpreted. Especially since Ianto didn't know Tyra "I can explain."

Ianto took a step closer, trying to catch a clear view of the girl's face. Jack's reaction amused his a little. The other man was surprisingly insecure in their relationship and while he was a flirt, Ianto had come to trust him. Plus, Jack wouldn't be stupid enough to take someone back to the Hub if they weren't supposed to be here but there was something about the girl… She seemed familiar but he couldn't tell from the back of her head "Is that Tyra?" he asked, rushing forward to kneel next to the couch "What happened… The Year That Never Was? She was with you and the Doctor, wasn't she? What did he do to her?"

"Wait, you know her?" Jack frowned, brushing a strand of hair out of Tyra's face.

Ianto nodded, licking his lips uncomfortably "She saved me. Took off the head of a Cybermen to get it away from me."

Realisation flooded through Jack as he nodded "Canary Wharf," he mumbled.

"You still didn't say what happened to her," Ianto pointed out "Does this have anything to do with the time you were gone?"

Jack let out a sigh "Yeah. I… She… Tyra isn't doing very good and the Doctor thought it might be too dangerous for her to go with him for a while."

"He just dropped her off here?" Ianto asked, slightly incredulous.

Jack shot him a small smile "She asked. And trust me, he wasn't particularly happy about it but both of them understand that they couldn't go on the way they did."

"Woof."

Ianto looked down in surprise and blinked at the dog perched on Jack's stomach "What is…?"

"Oh, right," Jack laughed, scratching the puppy behind the ear "Ianto, meet Loki. He is Tyra's dog."

"He has wings?" Ianto pointed out dumbly before he ran a hand through his hair "Why am I even surprised? This isn't the weirdest thing I've seen by far."

Jack raised his eyebrows "I know. He's from Barcelona. The planet, not the city. They have the most extraordinary dogs there. You'd be surprised."

"No," Tyra gasped, jerking in Jack's embrace.

Loki whined, crawling up to nose at his Mum's face '_I'm here,_' he told her '_You're safe. You're with the dying-not-dying guy you told me about… Come on, just wake up._' Tyra let out a whimper, burying her face in Jack's chest, trying to fight off the panic that was spreading through her body.

"Ty, come on," Jack whispered, rubbing her back gently "You're safe here. I promise." Tyra shot up, her eyes darting around as Loki immediately jumped at her, trying to pull her back into the present. She flinched violently when Jack reached out to touch her shoulder. Jack winced at the fear in her eyes and retreated back as far as he could "Sorry. Are you okay now?"

"Fine," Tyra mumbled, taking a couple of deep breaths. She looked at Jack searchingly for a moment before she scooted over and sank against him tiredly. While she had just slept, she was still exhausted and sleep wasn't helping. She never got enough anymore. The time she had been stuck without Loki had been a huge step back and she hated herself for it. She didn't want to be like this. She wanted to be herself again… But who was she? It felt like she was playing a role whenever she tried to act normally.

Jack wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned down to rest his head on hers. He noticed the moment she noticed Ianto standing a little away from the couch. The younger man had backed away when Tyra had woken, not sure whether she would be comfortable with anyone apart from Jack so close to her "Ty, I think you know Ianto?"

Tyra mustered him curiously "Yeah. I was a bit surprised when Jack told me that you worked for him. Did you get out alright?"

"I did… Thanks to you," Ianto inclined his head with a small smile.

'_Mama?_' Loki questioned, nudging her cheek.

She flinched at the cold wetness of Loki's nose and pushed him away from her face "Really, Lo'?"

'_Are you okay now?_'

"I'm fine," she whispered to him, scratching him behind his ear. She had really missed him. It was a little scary to see how much she depended on him, but she couldn't help to feel safer with him around.

Ianto looked from Jack to Tyra "Would you like a coffee?"

Jack's expression lit up "Do you even have to ask?"

"Probably not," Ianto rolled his eyes in amusement before looking at Tyra questioningly.

"No, thanks," she shook her head, grimacing at the thought of coffee.

Jack gasped overly dramatic "Ianto makes the best coffee. You really should try it."

"Jack, if I drink coffee or anything else, I'll get sick," Tyra muttered "I really don't feel like throwing up any more than I normally do."

"That still hasn't gotten better?" Jack asked, his brow furrowed in worry. Tyra shook her head and buried her face in Jack's shoulder, exhaling tiredly. Jack rubbed at her arm "Do you want to sleep some more? The others should be here soon, so… If you want, you can lie down in my office."

Tyra yawned and pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes "I'm fine."

Jack sighed and kissed her temple lightly "I need to talk to Ianto really quickly." As soon as they were out of sight and out of earshot, Jack sank against Ianto, letting his head drop against the Welshman's shoulder.

Ianto stopped what he was doing and wrapped his arms around Jack's waist "Are you alright, Jack?"

"I thought I was," he mumbled quietly "It's not the fact that Tyra's here, nothing like that but I thought I got over what happened during the Year…"

"There is a difference between pushing it away and accepting it, cariad," Ianto whispered, running a soothing hand through Jack's hair "I don't know what happened to Tyra during the Year and after that but I think having her here could be good for the both of you. Jack, you need to work through what happened to you and as much as I hate it, I don't think I'm the right person to help you. Tyra knows what you went through and you know what she went through." When Jack let out a noise of protest, Ianto tightened his arm "I'm going to be right here, I promise. This won't change anything between us. Jack, you're one of the best things that happened to me. Especially after Canary Wharf…"

Jack raised his head, chewing on his lip "But what about…?"

Ianto smiled "We're going to talk about that. It's time we talk about everything, don't you think? It isn't fair that you're the only one having to talk about your problems."

"You don't have to…"

"I know I don't," Ianto cut him off "But I want to. I want this to work, Jack. I want you."

Jack swallowed before leaning forward, pressing his lips to Ianto's in a desperate kiss "How do I deserve you?"

"Because you're you," Ianto told him before pushing him away lightly "Now go and look after our guest while I get you your coffee."

Jack rubbed the back of his neck "I probably should take her up to my office before the others get here. Not that I expect any of them but Tosh here for another couple of hours." The last part was added with a wry grin.

"Maybe you can try to get her back to sleep," Ianto suggested "She looks exhausted."

"Yeah," Jack agreed "I'm not even sure how much she slept since I came back here… But even with me and another friend of hers helping it was hard. She hears her father…"

Ianto narrowed his eyes "I take it he's not a lovable guy?"

Jack snorted "That would be the last word I'd use to describe that man." He shook his head in disgust and ran his hand over his face "Why do I have a feeling that this is only the start of a very long day?"

"Jinxing us, sir?"

"I really hope not," Jack grumbled before leaving the kitchen area.

* * *

Jack glanced at the clock for what felt like the hundredth time this morning, willing the last of his team members to finally get here so he could explain about Tyra. It would be a little complicated as time travel usually was, but he had to at least try and explain why Tyra wasn't the same as she was the last time they met.

The alarm of the cog door blared loudly and Jack was glad that the small room underneath his office was soundproof. He got up, letting his eyes wander over the Hub and narrowed them on Gwen. Did she always get in this late? She was usually the first person to leave as well… "Meeting," he called, making sure that his voice carried "Conference room in five minutes."

Gwen froze on the way to her desk before looking over at Tosh "What are we having a meeting about?"

"I don't know," Tosh shrugged, not taking her eyes off the computer screen. If she could just get the last few lines done, then she could go to the meeting without having to think about her idea over and over again "But I guess we'll find out in a couple of minutes."

A few minutes later, the team bar Jack and Ianto were gathered in the conference room. Owen had his head on the table, grimacing whenever Gwen purposefully hit the table enough to make his headache worse. He was about to snap at her when Jack walked in and drew her attention away from tormenting Owen "Jack," she exclaimed "What's this about?"

"So, Tyra arrived last night," Jack started, holding up his hand to stave off questions "The reason I'm talking to you now is because you need to be aware of something. She hasn't met the three of you yet."

Tosh frowned "Is it because she travels with the Doctor?"

Jack smiled at the shy woman "Yeah. The meeting with you – your first meeting with her is still in her future. Quite far in her future if I remember right," he nodded "I wouldn't normally warn you but… Tyra is a lot different right now and I don't want any of you making a comment." Here he looked at Gwen. The two of them had been at each other's throats more than once and he was glad that Tyra had enough impulse control to not kill Gwen. With some of the stuff the former PC had said, he was surprised she hadn't.

"So that's what she meant," Owen mumbled, rubbing at his forehead. At Jack's questioning look he grinned sheepishly "She told me to not act as much as myself when we next see each other. That I'll understand when the time comes."

Tosh hid a giggle behind her hand "She actually told you that?"

"Yeah, the nerve," Owen huffed, crossing his arms.

Jack snorted "Alright, kids. Settle down. This is really important. You'll understand in a moment. Ianto is waking her up at the moment."

Just as he said that they heard footsteps coming closer and saw Ianto watching Tyra worriedly. She was stumbling a little and still rubbing at her eyes. They stopped just outside the doors, Ianto turning to ask the Original a quiet question. Tyra just shrugged and immediately homed in on Jack once she entered the room. The Captain was already on his feet, pulling her in his arms "Valkyrie, meet my team. Owen, Tosh, Gwen and of course, you already know Ianto."

"Hey," Tyra nodded, turning her head to look at them. Their surprised and somewhat shocked looks were making her a little uncomfortable, but she kept her face blank.

At that moment, Loki let out a huge yawn, drawing the team's attention to him. Gwen let out a noise of disgust "What is that?"

"Pretty obvious, isn't it?" Owen scoffed, inching closer "Is he a hybrid?"

Tyra shook her head "I don't think so. He's from Barcelona… The planet, not the city. They have all kinds of weird dog breeds there."

"You should see the dogs with no noses," Jack laughed "They're hilarious."

"You're just jealous," Tyra shot back "They're cute. In a really weird way."

* * *

Tyra was watching Ianto work in the archives when the computer in the corner let out a series of beeps. The two had been catching up since they left the conference room since the others were still making Tyra a bit uncomfortable and Jack had to finish his paperwork – much to his displeasure and Ianto's amusement.

Ianto looked up from the files "Would you mind reading that out to me?"

"Sure," Tyra mumbled, getting up from the chair with a small grimace. Sitting for too long was still something she had trouble with. Especially when the chairs were as uncomfortable as these were. Not that she would ever complain to Ianto about it. She shook her head and leaned forward to read the information on the screen "Traffic accident with a lorry from a haulage firm. Driver is dead. Seems like they found some suspicious-looking meat in the back according to this." Tyra wrinkled her nose "Whatever that means. Then again, I'd rather not know, I think."

Ianto tapped his comm "Jack, a police report just came in. Suspicious meat in the back of a crashed lorry on the A470 back to Cardiff." He listened for a moment before rolling his eyes "That paperwork will wait till you're back and no. I'm not going to do it for you."

"Good to know that some things never change," Tyra smiled faintly, sitting back on the wooden chair across from Ianto.

Ianto looked at her mildly curious "He was like that when you met him?"

"Worse," Tyra shook her head fondly "But that's Jack for you. He has so many masks but if he trusts you then that puts you in a special place."

"You know, I used to think he was toying with me," Ianto admitted "After Lisa… And then he left…"

Tyra reached out to put a hand on his arm "You're important to Jack. Never doubt that. He might have left with us, but he couldn't wait to tell me all about you."

"He told me about the Year That Never Was," Ianto told her, watching her carefully.

"Yeah?" Tyra hummed, her arms wrapping around herself "What did he tell you?"

"Mostly what happened to him," Ianto explained with a grimace "I still can't believe that I was mad at him for being gone for four months and all that time he…"

Tyra shook her head "Don't you dare throw a pity party. Jack knew that you guys wouldn't be happy with him for disappearing. He stayed those months because of me… The Doctor was trying to bring him back to the right time but… Well, he isn't the best driver."

"I heard that before," Ianto laughed "Didn't he bring one of his Companions home a year late?"

"That isn't even the worst of it," Tyra told him "We wanted to go to a concert in 1969 Sheffield and ended up in 1869 with Queen Victoria."

"So the founding of Torchwood was an accident," Ianto blinked "I always thought that he at least planned to visit Queen Victoria."

Tyra coughed in amusement, loving how normal talking to Ianto felt "You give him too much credit. It was an accident and then he pissed off the Queen and got himself and Rose banished."

Ianto blinked "Weren't you with them as well?"

"Hm," Tyra nodded "But I knew the Queen before that. Plus, I normally have a pretty good relationship with the British monarchy. I don't think there's been any King or Queen that really hated me and my siblings. Well, there was one, but we don't talk about him."

* * *

"_Ianto, can you come up?_" Jack asked, causing Ianto to cut off mid-sentence.

"We'll be right there, Jack," Ianto replied before smiling at Tyra "How about we go and see this suspicious meat?"

Tyra grimaced "I'm still not sure I want to know," she complained but got up to follow Ianto back to the main Hub. She really liked the young man. Even if she felt a little bad for him. He's gone through way too much for his age.

Ianto grimaced when he heard Gwen's voice from down the corridor "Oh great… What is it now?"

"I take it this sort of thing happens often?" Tyra asked, her eyes straying to Ianto before turning back to check out the Hub again. Loki yipped from where he was by Jack's feet and scrambled over when he noticed Tyra returning. Ianto – no matter how nice – had drawn a line at having Loki in his archives. Not that he wouldn't have made an exception if Tyra had really needed him but the fewer animals in the archives, the better. He really didn't care to clean up the fur…

"Want to stand down?" Jack asked, raising his eyebrow at Gwen.

"No," Gwen huffed in annoyance. She rolled her eyes when Jack pulled Tyra closer, letting her lean against him "I want to find out what's going on."

Tosh jumped when the website she had just clicked on started playing a jingle and cursed herself for not lowering the volume "_Harwood's. You won't be sorry with a Harwood's lorry._"

Ianto handed out some sweet pastries that he had picked up on his way to work this morning "Catchy."

"Do you think the haulage firm are in on it, too?" Tosh asked, her eyes scanning over the information in front of her.

Gwen let out a strangled noise "Rhys? No. He doesn't know what goes in the vans. He just hires them out."

"The driver must have seen it loaded," Ianto pointed out, taking a small bite of his pastry.

"That doesn't implicate Rhys," Gwen snapped back "He's the most honest man I…"

"Jack," Tyra groaned, hitting the Captain in the stomach when sugar rained down on her head and clothes "Can't you eat like a normal person?"

Jack shook the pastry some more, making even more sugar rain down with a laugh "Where would be the fun in that?"

"You're a pig," Tyra grumbled, trying to free herself out of Jack's grip. She struggled for a moment before she froze, gritting her teeth as pain shot through her side.

Jack immediately loosened his grip "Are you alright?"

Tyra leaned her head against his shoulder, aware of the eyes on her back "I'm fine. Can you let go?"

"Yeah." Jack stepped back, trying not to look too worried when Tyra bent down to pick Loki up "Are you sure you're alr-"

"Just leave it," Tyra cut him off "Do you mind if I go out a bit?"

Jack shook his head "No. Just keep close. Or text me if you leave the Plass."

"Yeah, sure," Tyra whispered before hurrying out of the Hub.

* * *

"_Harwood's Haulage,_" a cheery voice greeted the once the line connected "_How may I help you?_"

"Good morning," Tosh replied politely "I'm with the Cardiff Police Department. I would like to speak to the owner. A – Rhys Williams?"

There was shuffling on the other end of the line "_It's the police._"

"_Hello?_" a male voice asked.

"Mr Williams?" Tosh questioned, looking over at Gwen who nodded, staring at her computer screen "Are you aware of the accident that has occurred with one of your vehicles earlier today?"

"_Yeah, speaking,_" Rhys gave back "_Yes, I'm aware of the accident._"

Tosh checked the notepad that she had jotted down questions on earlier "Do you know where the driver picked up the meat from?"

"_It's a firm called Harries and Harries. They came to us about two months back,_" Rhys explained, shuffling through what sounded like a stack of papers.

"Are they licensed?"

Rhys made a noise in the back of his throat "_Yeah, of course, they're licensed._"

Tosh hummed "Could you give me their address?"

After a moment of silence, Rhys hesitantly spoke again "_There's no address down here._"

"_There's a pick-up point. They said it was hard to find,_" the woman from before cut in.

"_Hello? Sorry. All I've got is a service station on the A470, fifteen miles from Cardiff,_" Rhys told them over the phone.

Jack shot Ianto a look who immediately went to work on a terminal behind him. Tosh glanced at him for a moment before readying her pen "Do you have a contact number?"

"_No, there's no contact number either._"

"Can you tell me where your driver took the meat?" Tosh asked. She was getting a little frustrated as did the others. Even Rhys seemed to be a bit annoyed at the lack of information he could provide. It was obvious he had trusted his employee. Maybe more than he should have.

Rhys let out a small sigh "_Yes, he was taking it Caerwen Abattoir. It's a processing plant. Just a general meat supplier._"

Ianto snapped his fingers, handing Jack a piece of paper where he had scribbled down a question. Jack reached out to hand it to Tosh "What time did the driver leave base?"

More papers were shuffled "_Signed out at ten to one. Can I ask what this is about?_"

"I can't release that information, sir," Tosh told him calmly, ready to hang up "Thanks for your cooperation."

Ianto glanced over when he heard her hand up before finally seeing what he had been looking for "Got him," he exclaimed, pointing at the screen that was showing a traffic cam "And there he is coming back forty minutes later. Let's say it takes twenty minutes to load. We are talking a ten-mile radius."

"Jack!" Owen called before any of them could comment on Ianto's observation.

Jack turned and headed for the autopsy room "Yeah?"

"The scan shows it's definitely alien meat," Owen pointed out.

"Where the hell would they get it from?" Jack frowned in confusion.

Tosh ran a hand through her hair "If it's going into the processing plant that means it's going into pies, burgers, pasties, everything."

Gwen's eyes widened "That means people have been eating it for months."

"Well, the DNA traces are stable," Owen shrugged "There are some signs of animal sedative but no diseases or residues. My guess is it's good to eat."

"Would you eat it?" Gwen challenged, raising her eyebrows at Owen.

Ianto poked his head in "Pizza's arrived. I presumed it would be a late one."

Owen perked up "What did you get me?"

"Your usual," Ianto told him "Meat Feast."

Owen groaned "Lovely…"

"Jack, Tyra is still up on the Plass. Do you want to bring her some food or do you want me to do it?" Ianto questioned, holding up the cup of soup.

Jack hesitated for a moment before he accepted it "I'll go and eat with her if that's okay. Tell me if you find anything, alright?"

"Go," Owen waved him off "And… Ask Tyra if she'd be alright if I checked on her. Only if she's comfortable with it thought."

Jack raised his eyebrows, grabbing his pizza along with the soup "Who are you and what have you done with Owen?"

Owen crossed his arms and glared at the smirking Captain "Shut up, Jack."

"You're showing a caring side. This is an event for the calendar," Jack teased. He knew that Owen wasn't actually as bad as he constantly tried to make them believe but that didn't mean that he wouldn't mention Owen's attitude concerning Tyra. The two of them had always been close – snarking at each other whenever they could.

Ianto looked over "Already noted, sir."

Owen let out a wounded noise before he rolled his eyes "You too, tea-boy?"

"Sorry, Owen," Ianto shrugged, looking everything but sorry.

"Whatever," the medic grumbled, storming off to flop down in front of his pizza.

Jack snorted before he made his way out of the Hub to get the soup to Tyra. He didn't even have to look for her. She was right by the entrance of the tourist office, staring out into the Bay, her phone pressed against her ear "Ty," he called out quietly.

She looked up at him and accepted the cup of soup "No, it's fine, Nik," she sighed "I'm fine."

"_You're not and you know it, little one,_" Klaus grumbled on the other end of the line "_You know that I would come if I could… I'm so close to finding a pack of wolves._"

"Nik, I get it," Tyra told him quietly "I don't want you to stop now. This is something you need to do for yourself. Just… Remember to not be an idiot and ask them if they want to transform, alright?"

"_Of course,_" Klaus rolled his eyes fondly "_This is going to ruin my reputation, I'll have you know._"

Tyra snorted in amusement, leaning against Jack when he sat down next to her "We can't have that, can we? Listen, Nik, I have to go. Call me when you got it, alright?"

"_I promise, little sister,_" he told her.

"Elijah," Tyra coughed before hanging up to Klaus' protests.

Jack ran his hand through Tyra's hair as she slipped her phone back into her pocket, cradling the cup of hot soup in both hands "You alright?"

"I will be," Tyra told him quietly "I'm sorry for running out on you. I… The way they were looking at me. I just – I hate it. It always feels like people are judging me for something that isn't even my fault." She hesitated for a moment "Then again, maybe it is."

"The Master isn't your fault," Jack told her firmly.

Tyra shook her head "I know. I'm not blaming myself for that… But Mikael only went after me because I was an idiot and locked him up for almost a century."

"You wanted to help your siblings," Jack reminded "That's a good thing in my books. Nothing about this situation was your fault. Had the Master not woken Mikael up then he would have been the one to hurt you."

Tyra buried her head in Jack's shoulder "Maybe."

"Eat your food," Jack commanded gently, nudging Tyra before he grabbed a piece of his – now cold – pizza.

* * *

It was more than a couple hours later when Tyra went back to the Hub. Jack had forced her to lie down in his room for a couple of hours, making sure that she rested while they were off trying to find the warehouse in question. From what they had told her, they found Gwen's fiancé there which had messed up all their plans. Now that he knew, Gwen insisted on showing him the Hub and introducing him to her team.

"Well, this is unprecedented," Ianto mumbled, raising the beer bottle to his mouth "The fiancé finding out."

Tosh shifted on the couch, making Tyra look over at her "Mainly because some of us are sad and single," she huffed.

"Speak for yourself." Owen turned around on his chair "I am better off without all that kind of hassle."

"Maybe the answer is to go out with someone who knows what you do," Tosh pointed out, throwing Owen a huge hint.

Owen raised an eyebrow "Look around you, Tosh. Only we know what we do."

Tyra hid her face in her hands, trying to contain the noise that was threatening to spill from her lips "Is this how Jack felt?" she asked Ianto quietly "When the Doctor and I were still dancing around each other? Because this is painful to watch."

"I'm sure it was worse with the two of you," Ianto patted her shoulder.

"That doesn't make it better," Tyra groaned, letting her head drop back against the wall. She looked up at Jack before rubbing at her eyes. She was tired and for once just wanted to sleep. Even if she hadn't really done much that day, being surrounded by strangers was putting her on edge and she didn't like it. It was exhausting. More so since Loki decided to abandon her halfway through to hide in Jack's office while she was stuck downstairs being prodded by Owen.

Jack walked out of his office "They're coming."

"Wow," Rhys breathed as the lift started lowering "Who'd have thought this was here?" Myfanwy screeched, making a loop around the Hub before disappearing back in her nest "Oh. That looked so real."

"It was real," Gwen pointed out, glancing down to see the team waiting for them.

Rhys looked over at his girlfriend "They're extinct, Gwen," he pointed out slowly.

Gwen caught Jack's eye and tried not to wince at the hard look she found there "Oh, boy."

"In your timeline, yes," Jack spoke up, stepping closer to the two of them. He held out his hand for Rhys to shake "Captain Jack Harkness. Thanks for dropping in, Rhys. My team. Owen, Toshiko and Ianto." He stepped back and wrapped an arm around Tyra's shoulders "This is Tyra."

"Please to meet you," Rhys nodded at the group.

Jack inclined his head before gesturing around him "Welcome to our headquarters."

Rhys looked around "It's a bit bigger than mine," he laughed awkwardly before he stopped and hesitated "So, Gwen tells me you catch aliens."

"That's right," Jack agreed.

"There's a Rift through space and time running through Cardiff, Rhys, and stuff slips in from other timelines and planets, and it's our job to monitor it," Owen continued.

Tyra shifted "About that…"

Jack looked down at her "Let me guess. You had something to do with that?"

"Well, the rift always existed," Tyra shrugged "It just got… worse after we were there."

Jack let out a snort, hiding his face in her hair for a moment "I'm not surprised…"

Rhys looked at them in confusion "Are you sure you're not some kind of weird cult?"

"You saw that alien in the warehouse," Gwen pointed out, hoping to refocus the conversation on her… on Rhys "Go on."

Jack focussed immediately "What did you see?"

Rhys shook his head, remembering the poor creature he had seen earlier that day "It was like this huge, shapeless beast, filling the space. Like a mound of flesh."

"So it's one massive entity as opposed to several organisms," Tosh murmured.

"The latest tests reveal high levels of chloride, so it probably lives in the water. I reckon it came through the Rift, into the sea and its beached itself."

Jack tilted his head "Like a giant alien manatee."

Ianto shook his head "But how did they get it there? That warehouse must be fifty metres long."

Rhys shrugged "Maybe it was smaller when they found it. They said it was growing."

"It's not dead?" Jack asked in alarm. Tyra straightened, her eyes narrowing on Gwen's boyfriend.

"No, it's breathing," Rhys explained "Its eye opened."

Owen inhaled sharply "So the protein chains regenerate despite the mutilation. Not only is it replenishing its own flesh but it's increasing it, giving them a brand new meat supply."

"But how?" Tyra frowned "The more they cut away, the more it grows back… That means…"

"It could last them for years," Tosh finished for her "If we understood how it worked, we could feed the world."

Ianto smiled wryly "We could release a single."

"Before we get ahead of ourselves, we're talking about dodgy pies in Merthyr, okay?" Jack's voice turned cold as he regarded his team "And the fact that they're cutting it up alive. Which we could have put a stop to already if it wasn't for you."

Rhys gritted his teeth "I thought my fiancée was in danger."

"Well, Mr Caveman, she wasn't," Jack snapped, making Tyra back away from him. She hadn't seen him this angry in a while and certainly not when she was this close to him "She can handle herself."

"Jack…"

Jack ignored Gwen, glaring at Rhys "All you did tonight was mess things up. Now we have to think of a way to get back in and thanks to you, they'll have tightened security."

"Well, if you stopped and asked me what I saw in there, instead of showing off around the place…"

"Do I show off?" Jack frowned, looking over at Ianto.

Ianto raised his shoulder in a shrug, keeping an eye on Tyra who was staring at the confrontation as if she wasn't all there anymore "Just a bit."

"You'd know I got out by telling them I wanted a job as a delivery boy," Rhys growled, stepping closer to Jack, eyes glowing with anger "So rather than cock things up, I've found you a way to get in. But if you can't handle that, big boy, then you can stuff it."

"Jack," Ianto spoke up quietly, trying to get his attention without making everyone realise that Tyra was having some sort of flashback. He recognised the look in her eyes… Jack had it more than once before after the Year. It wasn't uncommon for the other man to just drift off when it was just the two of them.

Jack forced himself to relax despite Rhys being in his bubble "This is quite homoerotic," he deflected, turning around.

Gwen reached out to stop him from walking away "No, no, no, no. Jack, he's not getting us in."

"Team meeting," he snapped, pointing at Rhys violently "You too." With that, he exchanged a look with Ianto before leading Tyra to his office. He let out a sigh after Tyra was sitting on his couch and mumbled more to himself than to Tyra "Why do I have the feeling that being with me isn't going to make you any better, Valkyrie?"

Loki jumped up on the couch, planting himself on Tyra's lap before he whined, nudging her hand until she started petting his head absentmindedly.

Jack nodded, scratching the dog's ears "I'm going to be back in a bit," he told the puppy "And I expect that you stay with her while we're in the Hub. Might need to talk to Ianto about his 'no dog' policy in the archives…"

Loki barked quietly '_I'll take care of her,_' he promised '_Thought she was alright today. Better than normal._'

"That's better than normal?" Jack asked incredulously before he shook his head "Never mind."

* * *

Jack studied Rhys carefully when they reached his company's yard the next day. He was a bit tired with everything and the fact that Gwen had been trying to rub her relationship in his face made him take it out on Rhys even more… Maybe more than he should "Sure about this?"

Rhys shifted and swallowed nervously "Yeah."

"Because once they ring, there's no turning back," Jack pointed out, following Rhys inside. He was already thinking about everything that could possibly go wrong and he hated that he was allowing Tyra to come along but after she expressed a desire to come he couldn't very well say no. No matter how much he would have loved to lock her into his bunker bedroom.

Rhys ignored the silently stewing American and smiled at Ruth when he saw her "Morning."

"You just missed the advert," Ruth pointed out with a grin.

"Yeah?" Rhys asked, moving over to his desk "Just popped in for my jacket and to sign for a van."

Ruth got up and poured a cup of tea "Here's your tea. And I got you a Danish, your favourite."

Jack made a noise in the back of his throat "I'm in the wrong job," he muttered to himself.

"We have got job vacancies," Ruth pointed out, studying the strange man curiously. He was incredibly handsome.

Jack grinned, winking at her "Maybe you could fit me in."

Ruth blushed lightly "I'd be delighted to."

"Would I need a licence for trucking?"

"Yes," Ruth nodded, slightly impressed how the man in front of her seemed to make it sound like a pickup line "It takes four weeks and then you can go long distance."

Jack let out a laugh "That wouldn't be a problem," he leered playfully. Flirting was his game. It was moments like these where he was glad for Ianto. Since he got back, their relationship had developed into something beautiful and while Ianto had been hesitant after Jack told him about what happened, his anger at Jack seemed almost entirely gone. So really, sometimes Jack almost wanted to thank the Master because without him – and Tyra – he probably wouldn't have even tried talking to Ianto. But a Year was a long time. Especially if you spent that time being tortured and killed nearly daily.

At that moment, Rhys' phone rang and the mood dropped instantly "It's them," he told Jack.

Jack motioned for him to answer "Go ahead."

"Yeah, hello?" Rhys asked.

* * *

Once they were both in the car and on the way to the warehouse, Rhys couldn't hold back anymore "Why her?" he burst out "Out of all the women you could have chosen."

"She chose us," Jack pointed out. And wasn't that the truth? They hadn't really cared about her much before she actually came into the tourist office with pizza. On that topic, Jack still hadn't talked to Owen about not ordering food under the name of Torchwood. Then again… He had been doing it for so long that it didn't matter anymore "Kind of stumbled upon us."

Rhys took a bite out of his Danish, choosing his next words carefully. He might not like the arrogant Captain much but that didn't mean that he would be rude "So did I. Doubt you'll be asking me to join."

"We needed someone with police skills," Jack explained with a sigh.

"Could have chosen anyone," Rhys shot back "Did you ever think about us? You know, me, her parents, people who love her, who want her safe?"

Jack clenched his hands "Of course, I have. Don't you think that we warned her off? She came back. I do know how you feel though."

Rhys snorted "Yeah?"

"Ianto… I hate seeing him go out into the field," Jack admitted, for once dropping his masks. He didn't want to miss off Rhys any more than he already was. He was a good man and constantly being an ass to people didn't help Jack either. He was pretty sure that the entire police station hated his guts "And Tyra is constantly in danger as well. I care for both of them…"

Rhys glanced over to see a small smile lighting up Jack's face "Tyra is the one with the…" he gestured to his face with one hand.

"Don't let her hear you talk about that," Jack warned "It's a bit of a sore spot for… Well, all of us."

"The team? Gwen never talked about her," Rhys frowned "Then again… She only really mentioned all your names once."

Jack sighed and ran a hand over his face "Tyra isn't part of my team. She's a really good friend of mine who travels the universe normally. She is only here for a visit."

"She travels the universe?" Rhys blinked, his eyes wide "Are you joking?"

"Not at all," Jack grinned "I'm sure she'd tell you about it if you asked."

Rhys glanced over at him "Maybe you're not as bad as I thought…"

Jack raised his eyebrows "I get it," he shrugged "I really do. I'm not great at making a good first impression. Nothing new there. Just ask Tyra. The first time we met I almost eradicated the entire Human race by accident."

"That sounds like a story I don't want to hear," Rhys shook his head "How is your life this crazy and how are you still alright with it?"

"It's just how it is," Jack told him "Had a lot of time to get used to it."

"We're here," Rhys changed the topic, backing the van into the alley not far from the warehouse.

As soon as the motor cut off, Gwen appeared on the passenger side "I brought you a Danish, your favourite," she smiled, holding out the paper bag. Rhys looked down at his almost finished Danish before he looked at Jack, stuffing the last bite into his mouth "I know what you're like on an empty stomach."

Rhys grabbed the bag, throwing it on the dashboard with an eye-roll "Cheers."

Gwen rounded the car, grabbing Rhys' lapels "Get out as soon as you can, remember?"

"Yes, yes, yes."

"Ready?" Owen asked, looking at Tyra, Tosh and Ianto before he moved to climb into the back of the van.

Tosh checked her weapon before following him "Let's do this."

"I love you," Gwen murmured, pressing a long kiss to Rhys' lips.

Tyra looked at Ianto and rolled her eyes at the sap. It was like Gwen was trying to rub her relationship into everyone's faces.

"I love you too," Rhys shrugged her off gently "Now, stop fussing and get in the back of the van." When Gwen looked like she wanted to argue, he prodded her "Go on."

As soon as the door was shut, Tosh and Ianto turned on their flashlights, illuminating the darkness "I'll prepare an antidote of ketamine so we can start weaning it off," Owen spoke up.

Jack smiled at him "Gwen, Tosh and I will take the main area. Owen, Ianto and Tyra, cover the corridors and the small rooms." He leaned back against the wall of the van, closing his eyes for a moment.

"What do you think?" Gwen asked, looking at Jack curiously.

"He'll be fine," Owen shrugged, realising that something was up with their Captain. He had been acting a little off ever since he found out about the creature "He's a good bloke."

Jack stood up when the motor cut off "Let's go."

* * *

Tyra followed Ianto along the corridor, practically gliding along the floor. She had learned to move quietly a long time ago, so it wasn't a hardship for her. Even while she was in pain, it was second nature to her. A couple of corridors down, she tapped Ianto's shoulder, gesturing in front of them, warning him of the person ahead of them.

Ianto walked forward, making sure his stun gun was where it was supposed to be "Hello," he greeted the worker cheerfully "I have a thingy here somewhere." He pressed his stun gun against the man's side "Hell of a day."

"Subtle," Tyra remarked, stepping over the man with a small grimace "Then again. If you guys are anything like Jack, I'm not surprised."

"You're the one travelling with the Doctor," Ianto pointed out "Isn't he the ultimate show-off."

Tyra dropped her head into her hand "Point."

They walked through more corridors before Tyra could make out Gwen's voice through Ianto's earpiece "_Ianto, did Rhys get away?_"

"I'll check now," Ianto gave back, jerking his head for Tyra to follow him.

Around a corner, Ianto froze, seeing the gun that was pointed at his chest "Hey, hey, hey. You two looking for someone?" Dale asked, raising his eyebrow "How many more of you?"

Ianto glanced at Rhys, assessing his injuries before subtly placing himself in front of Tyra "Just us."

"You thought the two of you could take us out?" Dale snorted "Nah, you're not that stupid." He reached out with his free hand to search Ianto, finding the stun gun immediately "Dave, get some ropes, tie their hands. You, girl, give me your weapon. Now."

"She doesn't have one," Ianto told the man.

Dale rolled his eyes "Search her." He turned around to look at two of the other men "I want every door locked, inside and out. Nobody leaves the building till this is sorted. Move it."

As soon as Tyra saw the man reaching out for her, she grabbed his arm, kicking him in the back of the knees. The moment he was down, she jerked him forward, hitting his head against the pipe next to her. She was about to grab Ianto and Rhys when a shot rang out through the corridor.

"You shot her," Rhys gasped, straining against the hands holding him "Why the hell would you…?"

Ianto swallowed back the sound that was threatening to leave him at the sight of Tyra lying on the ground. The bullet had entered through her temple, causing the wound to bleed sluggishly, brain splattered on the wall behind her. He was just glad that he couldn't see the other side of her head, not wanting to imagine the way it would look "I'm sorry," he whispered to the dead girl. He knew that she would wake up but the last thing she needed was to get hurt while out with them. It was the reason the Doctor had dropped her off with them after all. Not to make her hurt even more.

Dale kicked the girl to the side, not really caring that he had just murdered someone. She wouldn't matter in the grand scheme of things. They made a lot of money with this, so one life was nothing "Move it."

Owen glanced out of the room he was in, seeing Ianto and Rhys being led away by gunpoint. He had heard the shot but didn't want to give his position away just yet, so he stayed put despite being worried for his teammate "They've got Rhys and Ianto," he whispered into his comm.

"_What about Tyra?_" Jack asked immediately.

"I don't know," Owen breathed "I heard a shot though."

Jack cursed and closed his eyes. He pushed Tyra into the back of his mind when Gwen went to run past him, though "Gwen. Gwen, no. Listen." He shook her "It will be okay."

Gwen struggled in his arms "They must know we're here." Jack jerked Gwen behind one of the grates with Toshiko when Ianto and Rhys were lead in at gunpoint.

"What is it?" Ianto breathed, staring at the creature with wide eyes. He flinched a little at the pained cries coming from it.

Dale gestured with his gun "The lads call it the Cash Cow."

"Dale, what are you doing?" Vic demanded.

Dale shrugged "They couldn't bear to see us making money, Vic. Fancied some for yourselves, eh? Thought we'd be a pushover? Well, tell that to your friend."

Rhys shook his head. He couldn't stop thinking about Tyra's vacant stare "Mate, you're so out of your depth."

"Funny," Dale murmured "I was just thinking the same about you."

Vic stepped forward "Dale, don't be an idiot."

Dale ignored him and turned to the room "Show yourselves or I shoot the delivery boy," he called out, wrapping an arm around Rhys' throat.

"Okay," Gwen called back, ripping herself out of Jack's grip. She raised her hands, stepping out from behind the crate. Ianto clenched his jaw, seeing her there. Where the hell was Jack and why didn't he stop her? If he died here, he would come back to haunt Gwen's ass whether she liked it or not "There's no need to make any threats."

Dale shot a mocking glare at Ianto "It's just the two of you, is it?" He turned back to Gwen "Gun down. Kick it over."

"I don't have a gun," Gwen shook her head.

"He had one, so you must have," Dale snapped.

Gwen grabbed it out of the back of her pants "Okay. Okay."

"Any more of you?" Dale asked, switching his gun to point at Gwen instead "And before you answer, have a proper think because if you lie, I will shoot you."

"There's just me," Gwen told him, stepping closer.

Dale shifted, getting more nervous the closer she came. He gestured with his gun "Get against the drum."

"We can help you, Dale," Gwen explained in a voice she was trying to make as soothing as possible.

"Yeah, help yourselves more like it," he spat, pushing Rhys forward while the other man let go of Ianto, doing the same "Come on, stand next to her. You too."

"Dale," one of the men shouted from the catwalk "Two more. Far corner. They can't get out. It's locked."

Dale shot forward, pulling Ianto back against his chest "Take out your weapons, stand where I can see you. Drop your weapons."

Jack and Tosh threw their weapons to the side before they stepped out. Jack froze for a moment when he saw Ianto being held at gunpoint "Do you know what you've got here, Dale?" he asked, keeping his voice as steady as he could. He had to get this situation under control. Not only because Ianto was in danger but because he needed to check on Tyra. He promised the Doctor to take care of her and he failed. When she had argued that she wanted to go with them to check on the creature, he knew he should have told her to stay in the Hub. She isn't even close to ready to go gallivanting around again.

Dale rolled his eyes, pressing the gun into Ianto's throat more firmly "Shut up, now."

"It's an alien," Jack continued "A creature from another galaxy. It came through a Rift in time and space and it was unlucky enough to find you."

"No. No way," Dale shook his head.

Tosh snorted "Did you really think it originated on this planet? Have you ever seen anything like it before?"

Vic let out a shaky gasp, stepping back "It can't be. Can it?"

Jack gestured to the creature sharply "Look at it. Look at it."

"It's just meat," Dale spat "That's all."

Ianto had almost gotten his hands free by now, mentally pleading for Jack to continue stalling. And stalling he did "You're carving up a sentient creature and you've got to stop."

"And then what have I got?" Dale demanded "I'm making money here. This is my business. For the first time in my life, I've actually got something for myself."

Gwen stepped past Rhys, looking at the man with pity "Dale, stop. You can still walk away from this."

"No," he shook his head "You liked it me." He aimed his gun at Gwen and just as he pulled the trigger, Rhys shoved in front of Gwen, taking the bullet in the shoulder.

Ianto grabbed Dale's arm, pointing it upwards. More shots fired into the air as the creature started to break through the ropes in a panic. Just when Dale managed to wrestle Ianto to the ground, Tyra appeared, hitting him over the back of the head.

She had knocked out all the others she had come across, stumbling more than walking "Are you okay?" she slurred, looking down at Ianto.

"I'm fine," he murmured, looking at the creature and to where Jack and the others were trapped "You should sit down. I need to go and find Owen. Can you do that?"

Tyra nodded, groaning when pain shot through her head. She sank to the ground close to where Dale was lying, leaning back against the crates tiredly.

* * *

Owen ran into the warehouse with Ianto hot on his heels, stopping short when he caught sight of the giant creature trashing around "Bloody hell…" He plunged the huge syringe into the container and ran forward "I'm sorry." He injected everything into the creature and ran back for a second dose.

Gwen looked up from Rhys, keeping her hand pressed to his shoulder "He's okay."

"Owen, you're making it worse," Jack called when the creature's trashing picked up.

Another dose later and the creature stopped, blinking lethargically "It's working," Owen sighed in relief "Yeah, it's working."

Jack hurried over to him, ignoring Gwen "What did you do?" he demanded when the creature's noises stopped.

Owen bit his lip "Mercy killing." He turned when he heard Gwen calling out for Rhys and hurried over "Gwen, let me look at him."

Meanwhile, Ianto had knelt down next to Tyra, checking her over "Are you sure you're okay?"

She grimaced "Apart from a slight headache, I'm not any worse than before. It's alright, Ianto. Better me than you or Rhys."

Jack watched the creature until it stopped breathing before surveying the warehouse "Shit," he cursed when he saw Tyra and Ianto not too far away from the creature's head "Are you alright, Valkyrie?"

"Yes, Jack," she told him, leaning her head against Ianto's shoulder "I'm a bit tired though."

"How much is a bit?" Jack asked, raising his eyebrow. Tyra just shrugged, forcing her eyes to stop drifting shut. Jack let out a sigh and ran a hand through his hair "Can you get her to the SUV? I'll help Tosh with securing the idiots until we can deal with them."

Ianto inclined his head "Yes, sir."

* * *

Later that day, Tyra was leaning against Jack's desk in the downstairs area of the Hub when Gwen stormed in "I'm not doing it," she cried out, stopping in front of Jack "I won't drug him."

"You have to," Tosh pointed out.

"You can't allow him to remember," Owen added.

Ianto nodded "It's the rules."

"But none of you have any partners outside of this," Gwen gestured.

"What difference does that make?" Tyra frowned "You knew the rules before today, didn't you? So why are you so surprised about this?"

Gwen shot her a look "Keep out of this. You think you're so amazing because you're travelling with the Doctor."

Tyra blinked "What? The only reason you know about that is because I talked to Jack and Ianto about it."

"Gwen, we understand how you feel," Jack cut in, seeing that Gwen was getting angrier and the last thing he wanted was for her and Tyra to get into a fight.

Gwen whirled on him and glared "No, you don't, Jack. You all think it's cold and lonely out there. But it isn't for me because I have him. He matters. And I've lied to him for long enough. What he did today was so brave. Braver than any of us because we signed up for this. But he didn't. He did it because he loves me and I won't take that away from him. I won't. And if it means I have to quit or you Retcon me or whatever, then fine."

During her speech, Tyra had turned to Ianto in confusion "Is she serious?"

Ianto shrugged "Probably, yeah. She does know how to get Jack to do what she wants." The last thing brought a bitter smile to his lips.

"You really think you could go back to your old life before Torchwood?" Jack asked, narrowing his eyes.

"I wouldn't know any different," Gwen shrugged, a spark of smugness entering her eyes when Jack turned tired eyes away from her.

Jack sighed "I would. Give Rhys my love and I will see you tomorrow."

Tyra raised her eyebrows when Gwen skipped off happily. She mouthed an apology to Ianto and hurried after Jack "What the hell, Jack?" she asked as soon as the office door was closed behind her.

"I just…"

"We talked about this before, Jack," Tyra told him, sitting on the desk in front of him "You wonder why Ianto doesn't trust you fully? It's because of this. You're obsessed with that woman for some reason."

Jack dropped forward, leaning his head against Tyra's knee "I just… She reminds me of Rose."

Tyra's shoulders relaxed, her hand tangling in Jack's hair "I understand that, Jack. I really do but you can't keep projecting old feelings onto her. You're hurting Ianto and yourself and the rest of your team. If you keep letting her get away with everything, then you will have bigger problems soon. And you're right. She does remind me of Rose… But I won't go on about that because you guys didn't see her the way I did."

"Yeah," he whispered, closing his eyes for a moment "Yeah, you're right."

"How about you try and get some sleep, hm?" Tyra asked, petting his head gently "I think you need it after what happened at the warehouse."

Jack looked up at her accusingly "You were so quiet before… What happened?"

"My brother needed me to speak up," Tyra smiled a tiny smile before her face dropped "I can be… normal but it's work. He's always there, Jack, in the back of my mind. Whenever I'm happy… Whenever the Doctor and I get close. I don't understand how he can still like me. Not after what happened."

"Why wouldn't he?" Jack asked quietly. He had an idea why she thought that way but he wanted her to say it. Tyra needed to talk about it and if she didn't… Well, he assumed one of the reasons the Doctor dropped her off – without staying – was that he wanted them to talk. They had both gone through hell that year. Even more so than the Doctor. Not that he hadn't been hurt but he was more like the priced pet while Jack and Tyra were the dirt at the bottom of the Master's shoe.


End file.
